Class 
Book 



TWO SUMMERS IN NORWAY. 



TWO SUMMERS 

IN NORWAY. 



BY THE AUTHOR OF 

"THE ANGLER IN IRELAND." 



3> 



IN TWO VOLUMES. 
VOL. I. 



/ 



LONBON : 

SAUNDERS AND OTLEY, CONDUIT STREET, 
1840. 




Bardon,, Printer, Alfred Place, Blackfriars Koad. 



1 



TWO SUMMERS IN NORWAY. 



CHAPTER I. 

Introductory — Reasons for writing — Interest of a Tour in 
Norway — Little attention paid by former Writers to the 
Picturesque — No account of the Angling — Norway pre-emi- 
nent in both — Ancient connexion with England — Different 
Routes : by Yacht ; by Sailing Packets ; a Merchantman ; 
Steam Vessels to St. Petersburg ; from Hull to Gothen- 
borg ; from London to Hamburg ; and thence by Copen- 
hagen to Christiania ; Severally described — Copenhagen ; 
Situation ; History ; Sights ; Museums ; Thorwaldsen's 
Statues— Helsingor — Hamlet — The Sound — Steam Vessels 
in the Baltic — Gothenborg — Beauty of Voyage to Christiania 
— Situation of City — Land Journey to Christiania — Falls of 
Trollhsettan — Gotha Canal — Kinnekulle, &c. — Uddevalla — 
Fredericshald — Sarpen Foss — Jonserud. 

Of late years several brief accounts have been 
published of Tours in Scandinavia: but sin- 

VOL. I. B 



f 



2 TWO SUMMERS 

gular to say, none that I have seen or heard of, 
give anything but the most meagre information 
regarding the piscatorial capabilities, or geo- 
logical, or picturesque features of a country, 
which yet in all those respects is usually believed 
(and with justice) to be one of the most inter- 
esting within reach of the Tourist and Angler. 

By far the best of these accounts is that of 
Mr. Laing, who has given most valuable infor- 
mation on the higher subjects of political, moral, 
and social statistics ; which a two years' resi- 
dence in Norway, and acquaintance with the 
language, combined with observation and intel- 
ligence, enabled him to collect. But Mr. L. is 
confessedly neither a Geologist, nor an Angler; 
while his pictorial descriptions of a country, so 
little known as Norway, scarcely satisfy the 
reader's curiosity. And even his very clever and 
valuable statistics must be read with a constant 
sense of his ultra-radical partialities in favour of 
Norway, (which appear inordinate in the eyes 
even of the Norwegians themselves,) and against 



IN NORWAY. 3 

Sweden, which, are scarcely less exaggerated; 
as they have the effect of preventing him from 
seeing any single fault in the one, or any merit 
in the other. Most northern travellers will, 
perhaps, agree with him in his main estimation 
of the two nations ; but none, I think, can fol- 
low him without being convinced of the great ex- 
aggeration of his praise, equally as of his blame. 

I have ventured to say this much, in order 
to show that there remains enough of unoccu- 
pied ground, to excuse another example of 
the cacoethes scribendL Without further allu- 
sion to other previous accounts, I may add in 
justification of this attempt to render my 
countrymen, and especially my brother Anglers, 
better acquainted with some of the features of 
Scandinavia, scarcely touched upon by former 
writers, that, besides having spent two entire 
summers there very recently, and having made 
myself sufficiently familiar with the language to 
converse with the natives, at least, without an 
interpreter, I have traversed many most roman- 
b 2 



4 TWO SUMMERS 

tic districts, which, if visited, have not been 
described by Englishmen ; and, above all, have 
been fortunate enough to pass the longest time, 
and have had the greatest success, on what I be- 
lieve to be the best Salmon river yet known to 
Anglers, of any votary of the Gentle Art. 

I need not detain the reader with any fur- 
ther attempts to explain my motives in thus 
adding to the overgrown literature of the day : 
I feel confident that if only my little notice 
have the effect of inducing any intelligent tra- 
veller to visit the " Land of the Fjeld and the 
Fjord," his own sensations will soon teach him 
to cease to wonder, that I should have at- 
tempted to convey to others, some faint idea of 
the strange delight and interest, a Scandinavian 
Tour is calculated to afford. 

All is, indeed, so strange to one who has 
only trodden the hacknied route of Southern 
Europe : the scenery, the climate, and conse- 
quent mode of life, the strongly marked features 
both of the country and its inhabitants, the in- 



IN NORWAY. 5 

stitutions, the language, all distinguish the 
stern North from the sunny South, so much, 
that a rambler accustomed to the plains of 
TYanee, or the shores of the Mediterranean, 
imagines himself transported to another hemi- 
sphere. This novelty, this raciness of contrast, 
cannot but be highly exciting. But what 
greatly increases the interest of the Tour to an 
Englishman is, that in most of these points of 
contrast, he discovers so many links of union 
with the olden history of his own country. 

The Northern men played far too important 
a part in Britain during the very period of the 
formation of our national character, not to 
have stamped indelible traces on its adolescent 
institutions. The progress of improvement has 
been much less rapid with them, than with us : 
so that we find there still existing, in almost 
their primitive state, habits, and principles, 
and customs, and laws, which with us have 
been gradually modified to our altered condi- 
tion, but without losing many of the features 



6 TWO SUMMERS 

of their original parentage. Many customs and 
superstitions, now confined to our remoter dis- 
tricts, are still prevalent in Norway; in like 
manner as many words and expressions, that 
we usually consider vulgarisms, or provin- 
cialisms in language, are evidently Norsk. 
Again, the wild and grand features of the 
scenery, the atmospheric phoenomena, the 
dreary winters, involuntarily remind us of 
the mythology of Odin, or recall the shadowy 
pictures our boyhood conjured up, while de- 
vouring the pages of Ossian. 

Of course a residence in the country, and 
an intimate acquaintance with the language 
and institutions, are necessary, fully to appre- 
ciate these traits of national resemblance ; but 
any intelligent traveller cannot help being 
struck by many points of unexpected coinci- 
dence, the number of which will depend upon 
his knowledge of the language, as well as on 
his powers of observation. But independent 
of these, there are more general sources of 



IN NORWAY. 7 

interest, in the beauty of the scenery, the no- 
velty of the habits, the extreme kindness and 
hospitality of the inhabitants, the fineness of 
the climate in summer, that render it impossi- 
ble, I should think, for any one possessed of a 
mens sana in corpore sano, not to derive deep 
gratification from a tour in Norway; even 
though he be not, as I frankly confess myself 
to be, a passionate lover of Angling. 

The number of devotees to old Izaak's 
gentle craft has so greatly increased of late 
years, that the ancient haunts within the British 
dominions no longer suffice : while the oppor- 
tunities of a free range, and a quiet "cast," 
have wofully diminished. The best English 
rivers have long been appropriated : the Lochs 
and streams of Scotland are now very commonly 
"preserved," from being found to constitute 
a very tempting addition to the grouse shooter, 
whom many of the Highland lairds have dis- 
covered to be a more profitable tenant of the 
barren magnificence of their muirs, than the 



8 TWO SUMMERS 

sheep farmer. Nay, even in the " far West" of 
Ireland, proprietors are beginning to scan their 
rights in the waters, as well as in the soil, more 
carefully than of yore : and I even hear that 
since I threw a line in the noble waters of the 
Erne, a regular Angling Club has been esta- 
blished at Ballyshannon. 

Such, therefore, as have the power of taking 
a longer flight, naturally turn to other lands, 
where this art, so peculiarly English, is as yet 
unknown. A few adventurous brothers of the 
rod have already explored the Scandinavian 
wilds : that country will very probably, in its 
turn, soon become overstocked ; and then no- 
thing will remain for the more daring enthu- 
siasts of this fascinating sport, but to follow 
the tide of civilization westward into the New 
World, and there pursue their mimic war 
against the gigantic tenants of the vast Lakes 
and Eivers of that Continent. Meanwhile, they 
will not, I imagine, be sorry to learn what 
verge and scope there is for their prowess, in 
waters so much nearer our own shores. 



IN NORWAY. 9 

But, though I mention these piscatory details 
as constituting a main feature in the Tour I 
am about to describe, I would not have it be un- 
derstood, either that Angling was the only point 
to which I directed my attention, or that it is 
the only attraction that Norway presents to th,e 
Tourist. I trust the following pages will bear 
sufficient evidence to the contrary of both these 
suppositions. 

Although the Angler's devotion to his favourite 
pursuit is invariably so strong that it cannot but 
appear prominently, yet I believe there are none 
of our craft who do not keenly feel the beauties 
of Nature, with which it renders them so pecu- 
liarly conversant ; and few who do not possess a 
desire for the general information befitting a 
gentleman and a Christian ; even if they have 
not (as is very often the case) a turn for some 
particular branch of Natural History. While, 
therefore, I have entered at large into the sub- 
jects more immediately interesting to my brother 
Anglers, I have not omitted to describe, as dis- 
b 3 



10 TWO SUMMERS 

tinctly as I could, the wildly beautiful scenes that 
Norway contains ; as also the moral and social 
features of its inhabitants. I have done so, in 
the hope that these details may find favour in 
the eyes of my reader, no less than to satisfy 
the feelings of grateful recollection with which 
I look back to my Scandinavian Tours, and 
which I have sought to perpetuate in the fol- 
lowing pages. 

One of my chief inducements to publish these 
volumes was the desire of assisting such of my 
countrymen as may wish to visit Norway, and 
especially Anglers ; 1 shall therefore commence 
by pointing out the best modes of reaching it. 
For this purpose, perhaps a private Yacht will 
appear to some the most desirable : but besides 
that not many of my readers can be supposed 
to possess so costly a mode of conveyance, I 
think it objectionable, as it must either remain 
in port during the Tour, an useless source of 
expense; or if it be employed as a means of 
transport from point to point, the interest- 



IN NORWAY. 



11 



ing and improving opportunity of seeing the 
scenery and inhabitants of the interior is lost. 

There are every summer good sailing vessels 
from London, or Harwich, to Drammen, or 
Christiania, to Grothenborg, and even to Trond- 
hjem.* There are frequently merchant ships, 
and occasionally Steamers, from Hull to Goth- 
enborg : and for a short time last year (1839) 
the Steam Packets to St. Petersburg landed 
passengers at Christiansand, which enabled the 
Tourist to reach the southern shores of Norway, 
on the fourth day from London. Unfortu- 
nately the experiment answered so badly, that 
it was given up before the season was over. 

All these opportunities, however, are preca- 
rious. The only route that can be depended on 
for regularity, is that by steam to Hamburg, 

* This summer (1840) steam packets have been established 
between Hull and Gothenborg, touching at Christiansand. They 
leave Hull every Saturday afternoon ; thus affording the shortest 
and easiest mode of reaching either Norway or Sweden, to those 
who do not object to the length of the voyage : and as they 
convey the letters by contract with Government, there is every 
prospect of their being continued for some time at least. 



12 TWO SUMMERS 

and thence to Kiel and Liibeck ; from both 
which places there are weekly communications 
by Steam vessels, with the whole of the North. 
This route is longer and more expensive ; and 
subjects the traveller to the frequent change of 
conveyance and of money, as well as to the 
annoyance of passports and custom-houses. But 
should he only have sufficient leisure, and an 
ordinary wish for information, he will most 
probably consider this delay and annoyance 
counterbalanced by the opportunity of seeing 
Hamburg, the Baltic, Copenhagen, Gothen- 
borg, &c. The Angler will find little to inter- 
est him on the road, except at Falkenberg : 
but the geologist will be amply repaid at many 
points for any days that his time will allow 
him to devote to his favourite science. 

Any Passport whatever will suffice, except for 
Russia ; quite as much attention being paid to 
that of the Hanseatic consul, as to Lord Pal- 
merston's costly Firman. Both in Denmark and 
Sweden all travellers are obliged to take out 



IN NORWAY. 13 

a " land-pass," or passport of the country, in 
addition to the foreign one they bring with 
them : in Norway a passport is rarely asked for 
after the first landing. Almost any kind of 
English money can be exchanged for that of the 
respective countries. I obtained from Messrs. 
Norman and Sewell a circular letter to all their 
very respectable correspondents in the North, 
and took besides both sovereigns, and Hemes 
and Farquhar's notes : with none of which I had 
the least difficulty in any of the principal towns ; 
although the first secured me civilities, which 
of course I could not expect from the latter. 

The best season for starting, for one who has 
the entire summer at his command, is as early 
in May as the weather may seem to be well set- 
tled ; which will enable the Tourist to see a little 
of Copenhagen, Trollhsettan, Christiania, &c. 
before the snows have sufficiently melted, for the 
interior of Norway to become easy of access. 

There are commodious and powerful Steam 
Packets, from the Tower stairs, every Tuesday 



14 TWO SUMMERS 

and Friday night, to Hamburg. The passage 
is usually performed in about sixty hours ; the 
minimum being forty-eight, and the maximum 
seventy or eighty hours, according to weather. 
The distance from point to point is called 450 
miles ; a great part of it, however, is either in 
the two rivers, or under the comparative pro- 
tection of the land, so as to afford tolerably 
smooth water : in mid-channel there is almost 
invariably a violent swell from the North or 
South, (according to the wind,) that causes the 
vessel to pitch from side to side, in a manner 
most trying to landsmen's nerves and stomachs. 

Hamburg possesses no manufactures, but 
has a great transit trade. Indeed it may be 
considered the commercial capital of the Con- 
tinent ; as it both serves for an emporium where 
most other countries obtain foreign goods and 
colonial produce ; and also regulates the rate of 
continental exchanges. It is a large and hand- 
some city. The more ancient streets contain 
singularly quaint, lofty buildings, with huge 



IN NORWAY. 15 

gable ends towards the streets, of a fantastic 
scroll pattern : while the quarter round the 
Alster is built in the most approved modern 
fashion ; and the ramparts afford extensive and 
most delightful promenades. This is one of the 
agreeable results of the long continuance of 
peace, that the defences which had been found 
worse than useless in war, as drawing on the 
devoted place the horrors of a siege, have here, 
as at Frankfort and so many other continental 
towns, been happily converted to the ornament 
of the city and the recreation of its inhabitants. 
No where has this been more successfully ef- 
fected than at Hamburg. 

There is great apparent luxury, life, and 
bustle in Hamburg; but I am not aware of 
any public establishment for any thing more 
intellectual than a good theatre, together with 
numerous cafes, most abundantly supplied with 
cigars and newspapers. The hotels, as might be 
expected, are many and good: amongst them, 
I had every reason to be satisfied with the 



16 



TWO SUMMERS 



Hotels de Russie, and de St. Petersburg: and I 
believe there are several at the least equally 
comfortable. 

From Hamburg, or more properly from the 
adjoining Danish town of Altona,* there is a 
Diligence direct to Copenhagen : but it is much 
too tedious, uncomfortable, and expensive, for 
any one to travel by it, that can possibly avoid 
it. The Tourist must, therefore, decide on 
proceeding either to Kiel, or to Liibeck; 
both cities on the Baltic : from each of which, 
steamers start for Copenhagen, every week dur- 
ing the summer; on Satarday evenings from the 
former, on Tuesday evenings from the latter. 

The distance from Hamburg to Kiel is some- 
what the longest, being rather more than sixty 
English miles : the road is excellent, though at 
the same time very uninteresting. There is a di- 
latory Diligence between the two towns ; so di- 

* The free town of Hamburg is only divided by an open 
space of less than half a mile from Altona, which belongs to 
Denmark, and stands by so much lower down on the Elbe. Al- 
tona is also a large, and actively commercial city, though it 
cannot in any respect compete with its prosperous neighbour. 



IN NORWAY. 17 

latory that I have always preferred either to post, 
or to hire a Voiturier. The former is rather the 
more expensive mode, the latter rather the more 
tedious : in either way the distance may be ac- 
complished in from ten to eleven hours : and as 
the steamer does not start before seven o' clock, 
p. m., there is ample time to get on board, by 
leaving Hamburg early in the morning. 

The Extra-post is well managed in Denmark. 
Each Postmaster is bound to give the traveller a 
paper, specifying the distance, the expense, and 
time in which the stage should be performed. 
The Holstein horses are justly celebrated all 
over Europe : and at every station very fair car- 
riages may be obtained by such persons as have 
not their own. The common Hoist einer Wagen 
consists of an inordinately long body of wicker 
work, with three or four transverse seats : it is 
a light, commodious, and inexpensive vehicle; 
but withal dreadfully jolting on rough roads. 
The soil in this part of Holstein is generally 
very poor, consisting of transported gravel and 
boulders ; beneath which, on approaching Kiel, 



18 TWO SUMMERS 

the chalk is seen appearing. The stranger will 
be struck with the enormous hostelries, with 
their lofty gable ends, standing across the 
road, and covered with an immense expanse of 
thatched roof. The carriages drive into the 
centre of these houses, and the horses are there 
fed with the usual black bread of the country, 
without being unharnessed. 

Kiel has nothing to recommend it beyond the 
gardens attached to the royal Chateau, and its 
rather pretty bay : but the voyage from it to 
Copenhagen is interesting, as it passes close to 
the islands Alster, Moen, &c. : it is performed 
in about twenty hours. 

The road from Hamburg to Liibeck used to 
be proverbially the worst in Europe, in conse- 
quence of his Danish majesty' s* not permitting 
the small portion of it that traverses his do- 
minions to be repaired ; with the view of driv- 
ing all travellers to his own town of Kiel. 

* This aged monarch is since dead : it remains yet to be 
seen what will be the course of his successor. 



IN NORWAY. 19 

Lately, however, he has been shamed into 
allowing its improvement ; though he still per- 
tinaciously refuses his sanction to a Railroad 
between the two Free Towns ; for which the 
necessary funds had long been raised, and a 
Company formed. Of its success little doubt 
could be entertained, since no two towns 
could be better situated for a railroad, and 
the intermediate land is a dead level. 

By passing through Oldesloe, which makes 
the journey one German mile longer, (or 
about forty English miles in all,) the greater 
.portion of the worst road may be avoided; 
and by deviating two German miles more, 
the Saltmines of Segeberg and Luneberg may 
be visited, -which are interesting as being the 
only two spots where native Boracium is 
found, in minute crystals. The whole of this 
part of Europe is covered with a thick mantle 
of what French geologists call " terrains de 
transport," composed principally of rounded 
pebbles, with occasional tracts of sand, and in- 



20 TWO SUMMERS 

terspersed with those remarkable fragments of 
the older rocks of the North, named by Forch- 
hammer, " Baltic boulders." 

The environs of Liibeck are very pleasing : 
and to an admirer of the architecture of the 
Middle Ages, the town presents many striking 
monuments of its ancient grandeur, when it was 
confessedly the head of the Hanseatic League, 
the first Naval Power until Holland and Eng- 
land arose to eclipse its supremacy. A day 
may be agreeably spent in examining the pic- 
turesque relics of times, to which modern taste 
in our country seems fond of recurring for 
models, both in architecture and furniture: the 
environs also present many points for a delight- 
ful stroll ; and the inns are good. 

A small Steam boat conveys passengers down 
the river to the pretty little port and bathing 
town of Travemunde, (i. e. " Mouth of the 
Trave,") where the Copenhagen steamer is 
ready to transport them in less than twenty 
hours to the Danish capital. A third commu- 



IN NORWAY. 21 

nication has also lately been established between 
Kiel and Copenhagen, by means of a small 
Steam boat, called the Lowen, to Wordingborg, 
and thence over land throngh Zeeland, by Dili- 
gence : I do not, however, by any means recom- 
mend it in preference to either of the others. 

Whichever of these routes may have been 
adopted, no Englishman can approach Copen- 
hagen without a melancholy recollection of 
events connected with the modern history of 
that fine city, in which he cannot help regrett- 
ing that his country had any share. The seizure 
of the fleet in 1801, is supposed to be justifiable 
on the principle of self-defence, which holds 
equally good for nations, as for individuals ; and 
it has been comparatively forgiven and forgotten 
by the Danes. But not so the bombardment 
of 1807; the memory of which still rankles in 
their breasts, and makes a large proportion 
of the population, both high and low, to detest 
the name of England. Can we wonder at it ? 
the more especially, since the loss of their 



22 TWO SUMMERS 

colonies, the destruction of their commerce, 
the total extinction of their consequence, if 
not of their independence, are all associated 
with that most " untoward event." 

Copenhagen may be called on the whole a 
fine, and well built city. The line of its palace 
streets is very handsome, though somewhat 
desolate : that of its shop streets (for they are 
quite distinct,) is lively, and gay, and amus- 
ing. In the former, scarcely a pedestrian is 
seen : while the latter are constantly filled with 
busy, bustling passengers : and the doors and 
shutters being universally adorned with tolera- 
bly executed representations of what is sold 
within, the stranger is amused, as he walks 
along, with a novel series of curious pictures. 
The squares are remarkably spacious ; and it 
has altogether very much the air of a capital : a 
feature that strikes the traveller more forcibly, 
on returning from the Norwegian metropolis, 
which most undeniably has a very bourgeois 
look in comparison. 



IN NORWAY. 23 

Denmark maintains an army, that appears 
totally out of proportion to the finances and 
population of this small kingdom : and as a 
large force is necessarily always present at the 
residence of the Sovereign, the handsome uni- 
forms and martial bearing of the numerous 
officers, assist in giving the streets a very ani- 
mated appearance, somewhat different from the 
bourgeois guard of the good town of Hamburg, 
or the few, slovenly, ill-dressed military of eco- 
nomic Norway. The ramparts round Copenha- 
gen afford a pleasant walk, and display on what 
a low flat the city is built, scarcely above the 
level of the sea : I cannot think that the situa- 
tion is healthy. There are several ships of war, 
of the largest class, conspicuously laid up in 
ordinary: the commercial docks are desolate 
and untenanted. 

A few days may be spent in this city very 
profitably and agreeably, even without introduc- 
tions to the society, which is said to be ex- 
tremely good. Besides the well known Univer- 



24 TWO SUMMERS 

sity, and Societies of Science, and Antiquities, 
there are many public institutions, amply de- 
serving a visit. Of these my favourite was the 
Geological Museum attached to the University, 
which I enjoyed the frequent advantage of seeing 
in company with the distinguished Professor 
Forchhammer. 

It is, as every national Museum should be, 
very rich in the geological treasures of its own 
country ; such as the chalk fossils of Faxoe and 
Stevensldint; and the contents of the " Quater- 
nary" (most recent geological) formation, in 
which vegetable matter is seen in all stages 
intermediate between our own peat bogs, and 
the brown coal of Germany. It contains also 
an abundant and valuable collection of foreign 
specimens, both of geology and mineralogy: 
among which I will only mention the splendid 
Olenus Tessini, figured by Hisinger in his 
a Lethsea Svecica." 

Next to this, I was most pleased with the 
Museum of Northern; Antiquities . These chiefly 



IN NORWAY. 25 

consist of objects that have been dug up within 
the Danish dominions, and are rendered the 
more valuable from being instructively arranged, 
so as to exhibit the gradation from the flint 
hatchets, knives, chisels, spear and arrow heads, 
&c, of the earliest inhabitants, through the 
same instruments made of bronze, and subse- 
quently for a short period of bronze edged with 
iron ; until at last the discovery of the mode 
of working and tempering iron completely su- 
perseded all other metals. 

There are many other interesting objects in 
this Museum : and in some of the palaces, the' 
curious in ivory nicnacs may see how much in- 
genuity may be uselessly displayed, and what 
vast sums foolishly squandered, in the delicate 
manipulation of that article. 

But as it does not enter into my plan to par- 
ticularize all the objects of interest that Copen- 
hagen contains, I will only further mention that 
its present greatest boast and ornament are 
the works of Thorwaldsen, lately placed in the 

vol. i. c 



26 TWO SUMMERS 

Frauenkirke. They consist of a colossal figure 
of Christ, standing behind, and rather above, the 
Altar table ; with those of the twelve Apostles, 
in heroic size, ranged against the wall, on each 
side, down the body of the Church. As a whole, 
I know of no group equal to them in modern 
Sculpture. The attitude and countenance of 
our Blessed Saviour are beautifully expressive of 
the text inscribed beneath : " Come unto me, 
all ye that labour, and are heavy laden while 
the figures of the Apostles display not only 
general beauty and harmony, but also a variety, 
and individuality of expression, quite wonderful. 

RafFael has shown how worse than absurd 
it is to venture to represent the Deity. But 
surely it is more allowable to attempt to em- 
body the human form assumed for our sakes 
by the Eternal Son : and if any mortal hand 
has at all- approached success in this attempt, 
in my opinion, it is Thorwaldsen. He is a 
Dane, but long resident in Italy, and last year, 
came from Borne on purpose to superintend the 



IN NORWAY. 27 

erection of these noble statues in his native 
city ; where he was, as he deserved, most en- 
thusiastically received by all classes. The 
Church itself is simple, grand, and well propor- 
tioned, forming a worthy shrine for the treasures 
it contains. Above the portico outside is a 
beautiful group of St. John preaching in the 
Wilderness, esteemed by many to be Thor- 
waldsen's best composition. His famous bassi 
rilievi of the Triumph of Alexander, so well 
known to every visiter of Rome, have lately 
been placed in the Christianburg, a very 
handsome palace, built by Christian V., but 
never completely furnished, nor occupied. 

In addition to the many public institutions 
and buildings, with the docks, ramparts, and 
environs, which may agreeably occupy as many 
mornings as the Tourist can spare, he will be 
amused in strolling through the Market by 
observing the singular costume and manners 
of the fish women, and market gardeners ; 
who are the descendants of a Dutch colony 
c2 



28 TWO SUMMERS 

planted in a neighbouring island above a 
century ago, and have preserved their race 
and dress pure and unchanged. I may add 
that the figures for which Holland is celebrated, 
do not seem to have degenerated in proportions 
among her semi-Danish daughters. It is im- 
possible not to smile at seeing them on a 
holiday in the dog-days, cumbered with an 
extraordinary superfluity of petticoats, and 
coifed and neckerchiefed up to the throat. 
The colours of their dress are showy ; and they 
often display costly gold ornaments : the effect 
therefore is very picturesque. 

In a morning, along the quay, besides plenty 
of the usual sea fish, are generally to be seen 
several carts, loaded with innumerable eels, 
bream, perch, pike, &c. from the stagnant 
waters, with which the neighbourhood of 
Copenhagen abounds. But the Angler will 
perhaps be more interested by observing in 
the neighbouring boats newly caught salmon, 
from Halmstad in Sweden, hanging up to dry : 



IN NORWAY. 29 

and if lie have any of my feelings, this sight 
will urge him to hasten his departure towards 
the streams where they may be killed. 

There is a weekly Diligence from Copenhagen 
to Gothenborg; but I believe it to be very 
tedious ; and that its only advantage is that 
it passes by Falkenberg, where is the best early 
Salmon river in Scandinavia, hereafter to be 
described. A far preferable conveyance is the 
Steam vessel, which leaves Copenhagen every 
Friday afternoon for Christiania, and reaches 
the Norwegian capital on the Sunday evening, 
stopping a few hours, on the way, at Gothenborg. 
Unless the traveller is bent upon taking a cast 
at Falkenberg, the best plan is to drive over 
on Thursday to Helsingor, (our Elsineur,) at 
the mouth of the Sound ; a spot not only 
hallowed by the genius of Shakspeare, but 
of itself a scene of great interest and beauty : 
and having previously secured a berth in the 
Steamer, and arranged for the baggage to be 
put on board at Copenhagen, to embark at 



30 TWO SUMMERS 

Helsingor on board the Steam vessel, for which 
purpose it waits a few minutes off the pier. 

The traveller will thus have an opportunity, 
so peculiarly acceptable to an Englishman, of 
rambling through the localities connected with 
one of our great Poet's most imaginative crea- 
tions. And though he must not expect any 
very authentic records of the royal Dane, (all 
the many spots that are dignified with the 
names of Hamlet and poor Ophelia being com- 
paratively modern designations to gratify the 
demand of English inquirers,) yet to tread the 
very spots once trodden by the visionary Prince, 
and the lovesick Maid, will amply compensate, 
by its associations, for the loss of a day at Co- 
penhagen. The prospects, moreover, both of 
sea and land, are extremely beautiful. 

In running through the entrance of the 
Sound, the scene presented by the shores of 
Denmark on the one hand, and of Sweden on 
the other, with the castles of Kronenborg and 
Helsingborg on either side, and a thousand 



IN NORWAY. 3X 

vessels threading the narrow channel, asso- 
ciated with so many historical recollections, 
cannot but charm the eye, and awaken sweet 
thoughts, as long as the waning light allows 
it to be enjoyed. The traveller must then 
dive below to seek his berth; when if the 
passengers are numerous, as they are almost 
sure to be during the fine season, he will most 
probably be greeted with a scene such as he 
has not often witnessed. 

These steam vessels belong to a monopoly, 
and are very insufficient for the numbers that 
crowd them throughout the summer. They 
frequently take forty or fifty cabin passengers ; 
while they cannot by any contrivance afford 
proper accommodation for half that number. 
The upper berths in the Kiel boat are licensed 
to carry double: that is, if the vessel be full, 
you must submit to have a stranger, it may be, 
squeezed into the diminutive crib apportioned 
for your joint occupancy during the night. This 
doubling plan being impracticable on board the 



32 TWO SUMMERS 

u p r i n( l s Karl," which runs between Copen- 
hagen and Gothenborg, the whole space in the 
interior of the small cabin is crammed full of 
hammocks, that at night-fall are drawn out of 
the hold, redolent of bilge water, and swing to 
and fro in the centre, so close to each other, 
as scarcely to allow room to pass, or air to 
breathe. In both vessels, the accommodation 
devoted to the ladies is so very insufficient, that 
they are compelled to invade the territories 
usually appropriated to the gentlemen, occa- 
sioning the most indelicate intermixture of the 
two sexes that I have any where seen. 

Then the Northerns, who constitute the ma- 
jority of the passengers, being accustomed to 
pass one half of their lives in rooms hermetically 
sealed, are perpetually calling on the steward to 
shut every possible avenue of air, which the 
stifled English as pertinaciously insist upon 
opening. The squabbles and positive battles 
which this difference of tastes leads to, may be 
partly imagined : but the details of the thou- 



IN NORWAY. 33 

sand tragi-comic scenes that ensue baffle all 
description. How delicious to escape from this 
tainted atmosphere, to enjoy the " incense- 
breathing morn/' and see the early sun rise 
over the rock-bound coast of Sweden ! The air 
feels doubly pure; the smiling sky, and dimpled 
ocean, seem to greet one with a doubly pleasing 
welcome, that combined with the interest at- 
tached to the first sight of a strange country, 
soon obliterates all traces of the night's desa- 
gremens. In justice, however, to the steam 
boats, I should add, that they are as well con- 
ducted as their disproportioned size will admit. 
The fault is not so much in the vessels them- 
selves, or their managers, as in the autho- 
rities who countenance Packets so inadequate 
to the sendee they are required to perform. 
Their engines (obtained from England) though 
small, are good; and they are commanded by 
very superior, and gentlemanly officers, lieu- 
tenants in the respective sendees of Sweden 
and Norway. 

c 3 



34 TWO SUMMERS 

The month of the Gotha is usually reached 
about eight o' clock on the Saturday morning ; 
and is approached through an archipelago of 
islet rocks, among which flocks of Eider, and 
other ducks, are seen in great numbers,- The 
Steam boat anchors in the lower part of the 
river, about two miles below Gothenborg : and 
as it does not start again until two o'clock, 
p. m., ample time to see the town, is allowed 
to such passengers as wish to proceed direct 
to Norway. In fact, although Gothenborg is 
the first commercial port in Sweden, there is 
little in it to detain the sight-seer : there are 
no galleries of art or science, no public build- 
ings of any consequence, no handsome streets, 
no beautiful scenery. 

The first aspect of the town, however, is 
pleasing. A branch of the river Gotha runs 
through the centre, lined with the best houses 
that Gothenborg can boast, with alleys of trees 
here and there, in the fashion of the Low 
Countries. This canal is usually crowded with 



IN NORWAY. 35 

country boats of picturesquely strange appear- 
ance. The Fauxbourgs also of the city will 
not fail to strike the traveller who here first 
sets his foot on Scandinavian ground. He at 
once finds that he has got into a country of 
wood. Wood is almost the only material used 
in the construction of the houses; and being 
commonly painted a dark red colour, is ren- 
dered more conspicuous. The southern shore 
of the river, for a long way below the town/ 
is occupied with deal-yards, belonging to the 
principal merchants : the other chief export, 
besides timber, is iron. 

By far the best part of the trade of Gothen- 
borg has got into the hands of some very 
respectable Scotch families. There are about 
a hundred British residents, who form a very 
pleasant society among themselves; to the 
exclusion, apparently, of any but the principal 
natives. There is also an English Chaplain, 
Consul, and vice-consul, and a comfortable Inn, 
kept by a Mrs. Tod ; the other hotels have not 



36 TWO SUMMERS 

a very good character ; but the public Baths 
are among the best appointed I have met with 
out of France. 

If the Tourist be resolved to reach Christiania 
with as little delay as possible, a glimpse at the 
town, and a dinner on land, will be all for which 
he will have time, before he returns to the 
Steam boat ; where he will generally find a very 
inconvenient accession of passengers, most pro- 
bably in high dudgeon at the paucity of accom- 
modation provided for them. The passage from 
the Gotha to Fredericsvsern, a small town on the 
south-eastern coast of Norway, is rather rough 
in bad weather ; as it traverses the Skagerack, 
and is completely exposed to the south-west : 
but the most disagreeable part of the voyage is 
that at Fredericsvaern, the passengers and lug- 
gage are turned out before five o' clock in the 
morning, and put on board a small steamer 
that conveys them up the Fjord to Christiania; 
where it arrives about seven the same evening. 

This latter voyage is in the highest degree 



IN NORWAY. 37 

interesting and beautiful ; and as the vessel 
crosses the Fjord from side to side, to leave or 
take in passengers at every town along its 
shores, there is ample opportunity of enjoying 
it. The first view of Norway presents a very 
favourable contrast to that of Sweden, which 
latter is (at least on the Western , coast) as 
bare and wild as can be conceived, and almost 
devoid of habitations visible from the sea. 
Whereas, on obeying the early summons to 
leave the " Prinds Karl," and embark on board 
the " Constitution," in the harbour of Frederics- 
vaern, the eye opens upon abundant evidence 
of the presence and industry of man. The 
shore is lined with houses ; adjoining are ver- 
dant, well cultivated fields ; in the back ground 
rise lofty mountains, partially bare, and par- 
tially covered with dark pine forests. 

The town is entirely built of wood, with the 
exception of the fortress ; and from its colour, 
as well as position, has a peculiarly picturesque 
appearance from the water. The little port is 



38 TWO SUMMERS 

singularly embosomed in granite rocks : a short 
way from shore is moored the whole navy 
of Norway, consisting of a couple of corvettes, 
and some half dozen gun-boats, laid up in 
ordinary. I suppose this Lilliputian force is 
kept as a nucleus for their marine ; otherwise 
it would seem to be either too much, or too 
little, being useless in war, and needlessly 
expensive in peace. 

Fredericsvsern is situated at the mouth of a 
Fjord which extends for about seventy miles 
up to Christiania; without including several 
minor branches, the principal of which is that 
of Drammen. The lower part is very broad, 
but it gradually contracts, and about half way 
becomes extremely narrow ; after which it again 
expands into the beautiful basin, at the head of 
which is seated the Norwegian capital. 

I scarcely know a more enjoyable voyage, on 
a fine summer's day than this up the Fjord of 
Christiania. At first the course lies among the 
thousand islands of all sizes that line the 



IN NORWAY. 39 

western shore, and is afterwards seldom far 
from one or the other coast. Wherever there 
is any level land, smiling hamlets and cultiva- 
tion are sure to be seen : but even where the 
rocky soil seems to forbid all footing to man, in 
many a sheltering corner nestle small but well 
built cottages, with their green patches of corn 
and potatoes close by; while the numerous boats 
show that their hardy inmates consider the 
sea to be both their farm and high road. The 
extent of coast that Norway presents, indented 
with innumerable inlets, and the impracticable 
character of its rocky shores, render the pas- 
sage from point to point by water infinitely 
easier than by land. Fortunately, also, for the 
Norwegians, the seas abound with fish, that af- 
ford them a plentiful supply of food, too often 
denied them by their niggard soil. Hence a 
large proportion of the natives have acquired 
a very amphibious nature, seeming almost as 
much at home on the ocean, as on the dry 
land ; and are consequently excellent and intre- 



40 TWO SUMMERS 

pid sailors. The granite cliffs that guard the 
shore are often grand ; and the inland moun- 
tains which tower above them, clothed with 
pines to their very summits, display the noblest 
forms and masses; particularly towards the 
upper end, and on the western side of the 
Fjord. 

It will be readily felt that such scenes require 
not the additional charm of novelty to render 
them impressively interesting. But the head 
of this magnificent Loch (for it quite answers 
to the Salt water Lochs of the western coast of 
Scotland) is characterised by beauty, even more 
than by grandeur ; and no one, I think, can 
view the softening shades, of an early summer's 
evening, steal over the waters of the lovely bay, 
along whose circling shores the white buildings 
of Christiania are seen backed by a vast amphi- 
theatre of dark mountains, without confessing 
it to be one of the most pleasing pictures he 
has anywhere witnessed. 

Leaving the stranger in the enjoyment of 



IN NORWAY. 41 

this delicious prospect, I must return for a 
moment to Gothenborg, in order to point out 
another and still better route. For if the 
Tourist have leisure, I should strongly advise 
him to quit the Steam boat at Gothenborg, and 
wait for the packet of the following week : or, 
still better, if he have a native servant, or be 
himself moderately acquainted with the lan- 
guage, to proceed by land to Christiania. The 
falls of Trollhsettan are situated less th#n fifty 
miles up the river Gotha: and as there are 
almost daily steamers from Gothenborg, that 
pass close to them, it would be a pity to lose 
the opportunity of viewing so celebrated and 
grand a scene ; which would justify and recom- 
pense a pilgrimage of ten times the distance 
and difficulty. The vast body of waters col- 
lected in the Wenern lake, (the second largest 
in Europe,) rushes through a magnificently wild 
gorge, evidently rent asunder by their force in 
the solid rock, during the lapse of ages • and 
forms a succession of torrents and cataracts, 



42 TWO SUMMERS 

for tlie distance of more than an English 
mile. 

There is no one Fall of any great height : 
but the effect of the whole scene, from the 
immense quantity and impetuosity of the 
water, and the accompaniments of rock and 
wood, and the usual elements of a Scandi- 
navian landscape, is inexpressibly grand. There 
are several points from which all the Falls can 
be taken in at one view: there are others, where 
the adventurous explorer of Nature's wildest 
scenes may stand, as it were, in the very midst 
of the cataract, scarcely a yard above the 
enormous flood that rushes so swiftly and so 
fiercely by, as to make the boldest heart almost 
doubt the security of the fragile bridge poised 
across the fearful chasm. Accidents have not 
been wanting, to add to the fatal interest of 
the locality. 

In order to avoid this impassable barrier, 
and to open a water communication between 
Stockholm and Gothenborg, a canal has been 



m NORWAY. 43 

constructed in the solid rock, of two or three 
miles in length : though scarcely deserving 
the celebrity it has attained, it must be 
considered a remarkable work for the age in 
which it was executed, and the means of its 
projectors. It has however been found to be 
inconveniently narrow : and accordingly, after 
long discussion, the attempt has been com- 
menced (1839) to widen it, and improve the 
navigation. 

There is a tolerably good Inn at Trollheettan : 
and if the season be not too early, the Angler 
while here, may take the opportunity to kill 
a few of the large trout of Lake Wenern, which 
apparently descend the first or second Fall, and 
are glad to harbour in any of the side pools, 
where they can find quiet and food. The first 
time I tried this spot, I killed, with fly, one 
trout between ten and eleven pounds, besides 
a few others from four to six pounds each. But 
the next season that I revisited Trollhaettan, the 
river was so full of " snow brew," that I could 



44 TWO SUMMERS. 

not raise a fish, either with fly or troll. Mr. 
Lloyd, the well known author of "Northern 
, Field Sports/' resides abont three miles above 
Trollhsettan ; where he has a fishery, and kills 
with the troll great numbers of much heavier 
fish than I have mentioned. These large fish are 
called "Lax/' or Salmon by the natives, which 
seems to have puzzled Mr. Laing : whereas the 
slightest inspection of their form, colour, or 
teeth, independently of any consideration of 
their habits, might have satisfied any one as to 
their total dissimilarity to the Salmo salar. 
They are, in fact, identical with the well 
known large Loch trout, which has received, 
and well deserves, the name Salmo ferox : both 
here, and on the lowest Fosses of the Klara, 
and other rivers that fall into lake Wenern, 
they frequently exceed thirty pounds. 

There are regular Steam boats, three times 
a-week, through the Canal and Lakes to Stock- 
holm; and according to my experience, these 
packets by no means merit the unfavourable 



IN NORWAY. 45 

character given them in a recent publication.* 
They are necessarily small from the dimensions 
of the locks at Trollhaettan : but are conve- 
niently divided into cabins for two persons, one 
of which a single traveller may, if he please, 
secure to himself at no great cost; and thus 
insure ample space and privacy. The cuisine 
on board is certainly not first-rate ; but in what 
part of Scandinavia is it so ? it is the fault of 
the country, not of the vessels. They stop for 
a few hours each night; and reach Stockholm 
on the fourth day from Gothenborg : thus af- 
fording a very convenient opportunity of seeing 
the central districts of Sweden, and admiring 
some of its most interesting scenery. 

The geologist, who has leisure, will avail 
himself of his visit to Trollhaettan, to examine 
the neighbouring mountains of Hunneberg 
and Halleberg, as well as to make a very inte- 
resting excursion to Kinnekulle, &c, hereafter 
to be more particularly described. If he be 

* Hand Book for Northern Europe. 



46 TWO SUMMERS 

further prepared to encounter the overland 
journey to Norway, he will have the advantage of 
seeing the extraordinary collection of fossil shells 
at Uddevalla, the fortress of Fredericshald, 
where Charles XII. lost his life: the noble Tall 
of the Sarpen Foss, containing even a vaster 
body of water than the Gotha at Trollhaettan : 
and, finally, he will enjoy, in the two last stages, 
the most magnificent views of the Fjord of 
Christiania. Or, if he prefer the route by 
water, he must return to Gothenborg, whence 
he may make shorter excursions, sufficient to 
occupy the time agreeably, until the arrival 
of the weekly Steam boat on the following 
Saturday. 

I cannot say that the environs of Gothen- 
borg are altogether very attractive in my eyes. 
There is no softness of outline, nor beauty 
of detail': there are no well kept country 
seats and grounds; and the features of the 
landscape do not possess sufficient grandeur, to 
compensate for the absence of beauty. The low 



IN NORWAY. 47 

banks of the river are occupied for a long way 
above the town by extensive reed beds, the 
favourite resort of innumerable wild fowl : and 
the surrounding mountains have that bare and 
sterile look that often characterises the Gneiss 
family. Still I must confess, that a ramble 
among them on a breezy summer morning 
has a peculiar charm derived from their very 
wildness and sterility. 

The only pretty, and much the most interest- 
ing spot in the neighbourhood, is Jonserud, 
about nine miles from Gothenborg. At this 
place a small river issues from the last of a 
chain of lakes, affording an unfailing supply 
of water, of which an English company, Gibson 
and Keiller, have availed themselves to esta- 
blish a manufactory of sail-cloth, upon a very 
large scale. Ten years ago this spot was a 
perfect solitude, where now some hundreds 
obtain employment and subsistence, The dif- 
ficulties to be encountered were immense, as 
every part of the machinery had to be invented 



48 TWO SUMMERS 

and modelled by one of the partners, and 
afterwards to be manufactured under his eye 
by native artizans, whom he was himself first 
obliged to instruct, In addition to the interest 
of the establishment (which the civility of the 
proprietors much enhances) the situation is 
extremely picturesque. I will only add, that 
the geologist will find there a bed of shells 
similar, though much inferior, to the deposit 
at Uddevalla : while the Angler will not be 
sorry to learn, that the river affords very good 
Salmon fishing during the season: when I was 
there on 20th May, 1839, the fish had scarcely 
begun to enter it. 



IN NORWAY. 



49 



CHAPTER II. 

Christiania : Hotel ; Public buildings ; Environs ; Stadholder, 
Count Wedel Jarlsberg ; State dinners ; Bogstad ; University ; 
Museums ; Professors ; Charitable institutions ; Timber trade 
— Preparations for a Norwegian Tour : Travelling servants ; 
Carriages ; Provisions ; Regulations of posting ; Indifference 
of inns, and fare — Mode of living, and farming — Houses ; 
Horses ; Breeds of cattle — Forbud — Rate of travelling — 
Englishmen driving — National character. 

By whatever route the stranger may have 
arrived at Christiania, his first care will be to 
get his things passed through the Custom house, 
which he will probably find more rigorous and 
troublesome than he had expected in so free a 
country : his next, to secure the best accommo- 
dation he can in the Hotel du Nord. There is 
an inferior inn, and several lodging houses : 
but the above hotel is much the best, especially 
for a foreigner : and although the charges may 
be a little dearer than the prices of the country 

VOL. I. D 



M TWO SUMMERS 

require, I have always met with great civility 
and much comfort there. 

Much prejudice was excited against the 
Hotel du Nord, in consequence of the Duke 
of Devonshire, some years ago, having been 
obliged to bring a formal complaint against 
the exorbitance of its charges. Humbler tour- 
ists naturally thought that if one of England's 
richest dukes found the house too dear, it 
must be totally beyond their more limited 
means. The fact, however, was, that his Grace 
ordered a sumptuous banquet, of which he did 
not partake, in consequence of a subsequent 
engagement. But though the master was 
elsewhere engaged, the servants did ample 
justice fo the viands, not omitting a dozen of 
iced Champagne : and as all the preparatory 
expenses had been incurred, the proprietor, 
Mr. Smith, considered himself justified in 
charging the full price of a dinner, which the 
duke had ordered, but did not eat. This he 
was advised to resist, as an imposition ; and 



IN NORWAY. 51 

the story did Mr. Smith no good. A new 
proprietor, of the name of Scholter, has now 
taken the Inn. 

There is a daily table d'hote at two o'clock, 
frequented by most of the official residents, 
professional men, members of the Storthing, 
&c, in addition to passing travellers. There are 
seldom less than twenty at the table ; oftener, 
in the summer, more than fifty : and yet the 
process is carried on with such unexampled 
rapidity, that by half-past two, there are usually 
only two or three Englishmen left in "the 
banquet hall, deserted/' The charges (except 
for the wines) are moderate; the fare abun- 
dant, but without variety : the cuisine appears 
to one entering Norway, to be very- open to 
criticism ; but on his return from his northern 
tour, it seems, from contrast, excellent. 

As a stay of some days, at least, in Chfistia- 
nia will be necessary, in order to complete the 
requisite preparations for a journey through 
the interior, it may be as well here to give a 
d2 



52 TWO SUMMERS 

brief description of what this town can offer 
to occupy the Tourists attention. Christiania, 
it must be confessed, is both very small, and 
has a very bourgeois look for a capital. The 
streets are broad, and regular, but like all the 
northern towns, ill paved to a degree very 
unpleasant to either riders, or walkers : the 
principal thoroughfares are, however, under a 
course of slow improvement. Some of the private 
houses are of respectable size and appearance, 
though without any pretensions to architec- 
ture ; they are almost entirely built of wood, 
and usually painted yellow, or green. 

The public establishments are all on the hum- 
blest provincial scale ; to which the Storthing- 
house, with its four unwieldy wooden columns, 
and the University, and even the Churches, are 
no exceptions. Nay, I must say, that the lately- 
erected royal Palace is an eyesore, rather than 
an ornament ; looking more like a large, plain 
barrack, than the residence of a Sovereign. The 
first glance at the city betrays that little public 



IN NORWAY. 53 

money is devoted to public buildings : perhaps, 
the new Theatre, and the Freemasons' hall, 
may be quoted as evidences of a better taste 
becoming prevalent. 

At any rate, if Man have contributed little 
to the ornament of the place, Nature has done 
much towards rendering the site of this city 
one of the most beautiful that I know. It is 
impossible to attain any elevated point from 
which its environs can be commanded, without 
enjoying a variety of the most exquisite pic- 
tures. Immediately opposite to Christiania 
the Fjord branches into two spacious lakes, 
covered with numerous, well wooded islets, 
happily disposed. The vast amphitheatre of 
mountains, that hems it in, is characterised by 
considerable grandeur; while the irregularly 
rising ground, between the city and the hills, 
is studded with pretty looking country seats, 
belonging to the wealthier inhabitants. The 
outline of the shore is picturesquely broken 
by many projecting points and peninsulas ; 



54 TWO SUMMERS 

one of the loveliest of which is occupied by 
the delightful grounds, and tranquil residence 
of the justly popular British Consul. 

I am happy to be able to speak in the highest 
terms of the goodness of heart, the kindness 
of manner, and the hospitality, of all ranks 
in the Norwegian capital, from the highest to 
the lowest. The English language is spoken 
very generally : and not merely a respect, but 
an evident affection is universally shown for 
the English character, which is as gratifying, 
as it is unusual on the Continent ; where all 
respect or even fear us, but few love us. Our 
habits of living, and of thinking, amalgamate 
much better with the Teutonic, than with either 
the Gallic or Italian character : and of all the 
Teutonic races, the Norwegians seem to sym- 
pathize with us the most readily. Any intro- 
ductions that the traveller may have brought, 
will here pass for their full value ; and he will not 
find it difficult to enter into the best society. 

The Stadhfflder, or Viceroy, Count Wedel 



IN NORWAY. 



55 



Jarlsberg, is confessedly the first man in the 
country, not only by official position, but by 
his own personal character, talents, rank, and 
property. In 1814, when the Norwegians were 
in deliberation as to the person they should 
elect for their sovereign, Count Wedel Jarls- 
berg obtained several votes : and when later 
he was appointed Viceroy, the nation was 
unanimous in testifying its satisfaction. He 
has travelled much ; and is well acquainted 
with foreign countries : he speaks English 
perfectly well, and understands England better 
than most Englishmen. 

In his official capacity, he gives State dinners, 
twice a week, in the handsomest style; to 
which access is by no means difficult, for our 
countrymen especially, who will meet there the 
most distinguished foreigners, and natives of 
all classes. It is pleasing to see at his Excel- 
lency's splendid board, not only the official 
heads of the Norwegian government, the high- 
est military as well as civil officers, en grande 



56 TWO SUMMERS 

tenue, covered with orders ; but also the first 
men in science, and in the learned professions, 
and even in commerce, all simply habited en 
frac. Not unfrequently also clergymen are 
there, in the quaint and striking costume, 
adopted by the Lutheran church. These par- 
ties are confined to the male sex : but when, 
as is often the case, the Countess is present, 
they receive all the additional charm that the 
most simple, yet most finished and pleasing 
manners can confer. 

The Stadholder's official invitations are ex- 
tended to every Traveller properly introduced : 
but whoever may enjoy the further advantage 
of being admitted into the delightful family 
circle at his Excellency's country residence, 
Bogstad, will, I am sure, consider the hours 
spent there, among the most interesting and 
pleasantest he has ever passed. It is a sweet, 
retired spot, scarcely seven miles from the 
capital, yet completely in the country, stamped 
with the most decided Norwegian features. 



IN NORWAY. 57 

The first view of it is very striking. A rise 
in the road prevents its being visible until you 
are within a mile of it ; when on a sudden 
the house (a long, low, and rather straggling 
building) is seen with its adjacent gardens 
and grounds, on the opposite bank of a quiet 
lake, embosomed in steep mountains, bristling 
with tier above tier of firs to their very top. 
It is, in short, just the happy tranquil valley, 
in which one can imagine a statesman would 
delight to take refuge, from the turmoils of 
public life. 

On both my visits to Norway, the first and 
the last days I spent in that country, were 
passed at Bogstad : and it is to them that I feel 
indebted, not merely for a great deal of infor- 
mation respecting Norway, but for the favour- 
able impression, which the unaffected manners, 
and excellence of character, of these its confes- 
sedly first and highest individuals, could not 
help leading me to form of the entire people. 

There are a considerable number not only 
d3 



58 TWO SUMMERS 

of clever, but of scientific men, connected 
with the University of Christiania. For as this 
is the only establishment of the kind in the 
kingdom, and it being imperatively required of 
all who aspire to any public situation to have 
previously passed here a very strict and impar- 
tial examination; efforts have been made to 
secure the services of distinguished professors. 
Some, such as Hansteen, enjoy an European 
reputation : and it is only their inaccessible 
position and language that prevent others from 
being as well known, as they deserve to be. 
The stranger, that has any scientific or literary 
object in view, will meet with every readiness 
to afford assistance and information ; and all 
that have an opportunity of enjoying it, will 
find their society extremely agreeable, as well 
as instructive. 

To speak of what more particularly engaged 
my attention, there is a very interesting minera- 
logical and geological Museum attached to the 
University, comprising a good collection of the 



IN NORWAY. 59 

rich mineral treasures of Scandinavia, and a 
suite of rocks intended principally to illustrate 
the metamorphic changes they have undeniably 
undergone in this neighbourhood, in whatever 
manner those changes may be explained ; toge- 
ther with numerous and valuable specimens of 
the singular Organic Remains, belonging to the 
older formations, for which the territory of 
Christiania has long been famous. At the head 
of this department is Professor Keilhau, who 
has for many years been engaged in elucidating 
the intricate geology of his native country : and 
even those who do not agree with all his novel 
theories, cannot but appreciate his acuteness 
and powers of observation, as well as the kind- 
ness with which he unlocks the stores of his 
mind and Museum, to the most unlearned 
votary of this fascinating Science. 

In the same locale is a small Museum of 
Natural History, which contains a few good 
specimens of the Scandinavian Fauna, but is 
far from being so complete as it ought to 



60 TWO SUMMERS 

be, in the capital of a country so abundant in 
the rarer forms of organic life. The specimens 
even of animals peculiar to these northern re- 
gions, such as lemmings, elks, reindeer, &c, 
are very bad : those of bears, wolves, silver-foxes, 
and others, are scarcely better. Some of the 
birds, that have been recently added, are pretty 
good : but the entire establishment betrays 
too evident marks of the stinginess of the 
Storthing in matters of public ornament, or 
even utility. 

The public charitable institutions could 
hardly be expected to be upon a large scale. I 
was, however, much pleased with the manner 
in which that of Eugenia^ s Stiftelse seemed to 
be conducted. Its principal feature is the in- 
struction of young women from the country, in 
all kinds of weaving, and other similar work : 
but besides this, habits of cleanliness, piety, 
and religion, are so strictly inculcated, as to 
have earned for them the honourable appellation 
of Helge, or saints. 



IN NORWAY. 61 

Christiania is the chief port for the exporta- 
tion of deals ; as Drammen is for that of timber. 
This trade has considerably increased of late 
years, somewhat at the expense of Sweden : 
and would doubtless increase still more rapidly, 
if, as the Norwegians hope may eventually be 
the case, the protecting duties in favour of our 
Canadas were done away. Next to England, 
their best customers are Holland and France. 
There are many highly respectable merchants 
engaged in this trade ; to some of whom the 
stranger will most probably have letters of in- 
troduction, when he will assuredly find the same 
reason, that I have, of speaking in the warmest 
terms of their hospitality and intelligence. 

But, meanwhile, how are the preparations 
for a start northwards proceeding ? The sum- 
mer bursts forth very suddenly in these 
hyperborean latitudes, treading close upon the 
heels of winter ; and though exquisitely beau- 
tiful, it is so very brief, that none of its fleeting 
hours should be lost. 



62 TWO SUMMERS 

The first requisite for the comfort of the 
tour, in my opinion, is a good travelling servant, 
acquainted with the language and habits of the 
country. And I am sorry to add, they are 
not only expensive, but scarce, and difficult to 
be procured : there have been so few travellers 
until within the last few years, that the demand 
and supply have necessarily been very limited. 
Some Englishmen have indeed lately travelled 
through Norway, without any servant, and 
without the slightest knowledge of the lan- 
guage. The consequence of which has been 
that they both perplexed and annoyed the 
natives, got into many scrapes and difficulties, 
obtained little information, and returned with 
most erroneous convictions of having been 
cheated and robbed by every body. 

I met with several instances of " travellers 
of such a cast," who were full of complaints 
against the impositions that had been practised 
on them, and the treatment they had encoun- 
tered. From their own statements even, it 



IN NORWAY. 63 

was generally evident that they had themselves 
only to blame : and on speaking with the 
natives, I invariably found that my country- 
men's complaints were founded in mistakes, 
which the people had endeavoured to explain, 
but in vain, from their being mutually unable 
to understand each other. 

Some Englishmen also asseverated that they 
had had several things stolen ; an accusation 
that greatly astonished me, as theft is extremely 
rare in Norway : I met with no instance of it. 
I travelled, however, long enough in company 
with these gentlemen to satisfy myself that many 
of their losses were more justly attributable to 
their own extreme carelessness : and, in more 
than one instance, I had opportunities of finding 
articles that they had negligently left behind, 
carefully preserved until means should occur of 
restoring them to their rightful owner. And yet 
such Tourists seemed to think themselves justi- 
fied in branding a whole people as extortioners 
and thieves ; when in reality, it was their own 



64 TWO SUMMERS 

ignorance and carelessness, that were in fault. 
Certainly, as far as complete inability to under- 
stand, or be understood by the people, among 
whom they were travelling, was concerned, 
together with the most entire disregard of their 
habits, feelings, and laws, these strangers were 
completely exposed, both to the imposition and 
indignation of the Norwegians . But far from 
thinking they suffered grievously in either 
respect, I consider they got off marvellously 
well ; infinitely better than any foreigner, who 
should attempt to play the same pranks in 
England, could hope to escape. 

On my first tour, I was accompanied by a 
Swede, named Jacob Karlblom, whom I en- 
gaged at Gothenborg : he spoke English, and 
had previously travelled in Norway. Prior to 
my second visit, I had taken some trouble to 
acquire the language, and being thereby ena- 
bled to dispense with an interpreter, I engaged 
a Norwegian from the Hotel du Nord at Chris- 
tiania, of the name of Peter Arnoodsen. I can 



IN NORWAY. 65 

recommend them both, as honest, intelligent, 
and useful servants. I agreed with each on 
the same terms, viz. a Norwegian dollar, or 
four shillings a-day, besides paying all their 
expenses on the road. This is dear, consi- 
dering the cheapness of the country; but I 
could not hear of any good servant for less ; 
and some were unconscionable enough to ask 
much more. I should recommend my coun- 
trymen not to engage their domestic without 
consulting their banker, or the Consul : be- 
cause, if they do not know the language, they 
are necessarily much at his mercy ; and there 
are, as might be expected, men of indifferent 
character hanging about most of the foreign 
Inns. 

The next important matter is that of car- 
riages ; for as there are no public conveyances 
whatever, in any part of Norway, it is in- 
dispensable fox each traveller to have his own 
equipage. On this point, I strongly advise 
every tourist of common activity and hardihood, 



66 TWO SUMMERS 

(and no others have any business to penetrate 
into Norway,) to take the usual carriage of this 
country, and of no other, the Carriole. It con- 
sists of a seat, just large enough to admit the 
person, with a semicircular back, and a narrow 
sledge-like receptacle for the legs, and splash- 
board in front : the whole being fixed between 
two large wheels, into a pair of very long ashen 
shafts, with no other springs than what their 
length and elasticity supply. Short elliptic 
springs have been introduced into some Car- 
rioles; but I think them objectionable on many 
accounts, and at best unnecessary, as the shafts, 
if well made, are quite springy enough; and 
the vehicle is so light that it bounds admirably 
over the ruts and obstacles in its way. 

It is, indeed, possible for a Caleche, or even 
a light close carriage, to travel along the main 
roads in summer. But besides the impossibility 
of deviating from the great lines, and the diffi- 
culties, if not dangers, to be expected even on 
them, at ferries, bridges under repair, steep 



IN NORWAY. 67 

hills, &c. : it must be remembered that the 
ponies, which supply the place of post horses 
in this country, are furnished by the different 
farmers in rotation, and that very often it will 
happen that the three or four which may be re- 
quired, will never have seen each other before, 
and not one of them been previously in any but 
single harness. The Carriole is par excellence 
the carriage of Norway ; and in fine weather, 
with a good little horse, and on good roads, 
a very pleasant conveyance it is : under the 
opposite conditions, none can be very agreeable; 
I may add, least of all this. 

Of course the traveller must be prepared to 
be his own charioteer, and must take with him 
his own harness. He should also bring a 
light hunting whip from England, for no- 
thing tolerable of that kind can be bought 
in Norway ; and though the horses are usually 
spirited enough, they do occasionally require 
the argumentum baculinwn. 

To the splash-board should be affixed a 



68 TWO SUMMERS 

moveable leathern case, called a flaske-fur } ca- 
pable of containing four or six bottles, which 
must be filled with wine, or cognac, at each 
large town. Behind the car is a small wooden 
seat, on which can be strapped a strong box, 
large enough to contain as many articles of 
the toilet as are required between the different 
resting-places ; and on, or by the side of which 
the lad that takes back the horses, will be 
content to sit. 

A gun can be slung in its case underneath ; 
or occasionally be attached to the splash-board, 
ready for action : while the fishing rods, secured 
in very strong leather cases, may be strapped to 
each shaft. Between the feet, and in the dimi- 
nutive car seat, is space for a few books, some 
strong rope, nails, &c, and such like indispen- 
sables : and a tin case for grease, dangling 
beneath, in the style of our country wagons, 
completes the Carriole's equipment. Of course, 
the servant's carriage will convey, at least, as 
much; or, instead of a Carriole, he may be 



IN NORWAY. 69 

mounted in a kind of light tax cart, which is 
much more convenient for the baggage, though 
far worse for the horses. 

So much of the tourist's comfort depends 
upon the ease and substantiality of his vehicle, 
that I should certainly recommend him to get 
it new, of the best quality, and from the best 
maker. I have chiefly dealt with a man of 
the name of Knudtsen, in Christiania, and 
•have every reason to speak well of him. I 
have also bought other Carrioles at Drammen, 
which is the most celebrated place for their 
manufacture. If the traveller go to a respec- 
table tradesman, and purchase a new carriage, 
he can scarcely do wrong at either town; 
if he attempt to cheapen a second-hand one, 
he may be taken in there, as elsewhere. 
The natives complain that the English have 
raised the price of Carrioles considerably. A 
good one can scarcely now be bought under 
thirty-five dollars, or seven pounds sterling : 
the harness and bottle-case will cost about three 



70 TWO SUMMERS 

pounds more. I have always found that on 
my return to Christiania, I could dispose of the 
whole readily for a little more than half what 
I had originally given ; which, after the wear 
and tear of a four months' rattling over Nor- 
wegian roads, can scarcely be considered a 
heavy loss on so small an outlay. 

The less luggage that a Norwegian tourist 
takes with him the better : if he have any 
heavier baggage than what can be conveyed in 
his own and servant's carriages, it must be des- 
patched by the Forbud ; that is, the peasant's 
cart, who precedes the traveller to order the 
horses he may require. The luggage will be 
perfectly safe in his care ; only it is absolutely 
necessary that it should be protected with 
very strong cases, as it will be exposed to all 
sorts of weather, and the most tremendous jolt- 
ing imaginable. 

The commissariat department must not be 
neglected. The provisions necessary to be 
taken for the road, will, of course, much de- 



IN NORWAY. 71 

pend upon the travellers own tastes and habits. 
I should recommend him to take, in addition to 
a well-stocked fia$ke-fur, a little tea and sugar, 
with, perhaps, a few sausages, or a small ham ; 
some maccaroni, or rice : they are all useful, 
and do not take up much space. But whoever 
attempts to explore the interior of Norway, 
must be prepared to submit to great privations 
in this respect. Indeed, except in the towns, 
he must not hope to meet with any thing beyond 
rye or barley bread, excellent butter and milk, 
potatoes, with occasionally fish, but never meat 
of any kind ; unless by mere accident he may 
obtain some game. 

Wheaten bread is never to be had, except in 
the largest towns, where it is made of flour 
imported from Denmark. Eye bread is more 
common : but the usual form under which 
farinaceous food appears in Norway is that of 
barley cakes, called here " flat bread." They 
are very similar in shape and appearance to the 
large, round oat cakes of the North of England, 



72 TWO SUMMERS 

and Scotland; but are generally thinner, and 
when well made are to my taste very palatable, 
especially with the delicious butter, in which 
Norway may compete with the whole world. 

The only drinkables, (besides milk,) are a 
coarse, fiery spirit distilled from potatoes, and 
coffee ; which latter I have frequently seen 
made in the humblest cottage, in a manner 
that would shame many of our most splendid 
hotels. This bill of fare will seem meagre 
enough to the bon vivant, but little more could 
be expected at the poor farm-houses, that 
usually perform the functions of inns on the 
road. 

In the interior of Norway there are few 
villages, and no towns with the exception of 
Roraas and Kongsberg (which are supported 
by their respective mines) and Lillehammer, 
which the government has long tried to ele- 
vate into the dignity of a town, with very 
dubious success. The property being minutely 
subdivided by the law of succession, each man 



IN NORWAY. 73 

builds upon and cultivates his own little plot of 
ground : and the habitations are consequently 
scattered over the entire face of the coun- 
try. There are no manufactures to collect 
large masses together : and the only points, 
therefore, at which any considerable popu- 
lation congregates, are on the sea coast, where 
commerce affords the means of employment, 
and the ocean supplies the deficiency of the 
land. 

At distances varying from five, to twelve or 
fourteen miles, along the main roads, one of 
these farm-houses is appointed by government 
to supply the post-horses that may be required : 
and which each farmer, within a circle not 
exceeding seven miles, is bound to furnish in 
rotation, on being called on by the Post-master. 
The latter receives the trifling sum of four shil- 
lings (or less than two-pence) for each horse so 
summoned. This splendid remuneration for a 
run, frequently of six or seven miles, is called 
" tilsigelse-penge" or " calling-money and is 

VOL. I. E 



74 TWO SUMMERS 

the only perquisite the innkeeper possesses, in 
addition to the trifling profits derived from the 
few travellers that may stop at his house. The 
rate of posting is sixteen skillings per horse, for 
each Norwegian mile, rather more than seven 
English. Cheap enough, it may be said, for post- 
ing : but when we consider that each single 
traveller must have a servant and Forbud, and 
thus pay for three horses, we shall not find the 
Norwegian mode of travelling so much cheaper 
than that of other countries, where there are 
public conveyances, by which double the dis- 
tance can be performed, in the same time, with 
half the trouble. 

In addition to thus furnishing post horses, 
the skydsskaffer, or gastgiver, as he is called, 
is obliged to supply both lodgings and food at 
a fixed price. But as there are extraordinarily 
few travellers, and the tariff is very low, his 
preparations for guests are not quite upon the 
scale of a Bath or Cheltenham hotel. There 
is always one room, and occasionally a second, 



IN NORWAY. 75 

devoted to the reception of strangers ; in which 
are usually a couple of wooden beds, or rather, 
cribs, of diminutive proportions, and most 
scanty supply of bed linen. There is rarely a pro- 
per mattrass j but generally a paillasse, stuffed 
with straw j or else, the sheets (of very insuf- 
ficient dimensions) are laid upon hay ; some- 
times, sheep or cow-skins are added, to the 
great annoyance of any, but a very keen ento- 
mologist. To avoid such objectionable bed 
gear, I invariably took with me a pair of 
light blankets, which were easily stowed about 
the carriage, and contributed much to my 
comfort. 

The furniture, except in the best of these 
houses, is very deficient; still more so the 
crockery and cutlery ; while the stock of plate 
is comprised within a very small list of spoons. 
Nay, I remember one instance in which it 
dwindled down to one, which, moreover, my 
aged hostess vainly endeavoured to find, mut- 
tering all the while she was ransacking every 
e2 



76 TWO SUMMERS 

corner of an antique cupboard that stood in my 
room, " Well, I am sure, there was a spoon 
here- — where can the spoon have got to, I won- 
der ! " I was consequently obliged to drink my 
tea and eat my egg, without one. A very few 
days' travelling in Norway had taught me to 
dispense with an egg cup, such an article being 
never seen there : but though an egg may be 
safely held in the fingers, with a little dexterous 
management, a knife is, after all, a very bad 
substitute for a spoon, to extract its treasures. 
This reminds me that I should have added 
eggs to the occasional list of eatables : but 
they are very small, seldom completely filled, 
and of a poor flavour, in consequence as I 
suppose, of the insufficiency of food allowed 
the poor poultry. 

Under the above circumstances, it could not 
be expected that the Norwegian farmer should 
keep ready any stock of perishable articles of 
food, with so little prospect of their being de- 
manded, and with the certainty of their being 



IN NORWAY. 77 

very indifferently paid for. Moreover, it is quite 
foreign to the habits of the country to eat meat 
in summer. November is, in their language, 
called " slaughter month because they then 
kill as many sheep and cows as the size of their 
herds will afford, and salt them for consump- 
tion during the "winter : by which means they 
not only insure the keeping of the meat, but 
what is even more essential, they diminish the 
number to be supported in the stalls ; a most 
momentous consideration in Norway, where for 
six or seven months there is no food for the 
poor creatures out of doors. During the sum- 
mer months, the cattle feed and fatten on the 
mountain pastures, at little or no expense to 
their owners, who are so averse to stopping 
their growth at that season, that it is no easy 
matter in the interior to induce them to sell a 
lamb for the purposes of food: in their eyes it 
seems quite a crime to kill it at any other time 
than in November. 

Norway is emphatically a country of wood. 



78 TWO SUMMERS 

Its vallies are clothed with, forests throughout 
the whole length and breadth of the land ; and 
every thing, from a church to a rope, is made 
entirely of wood. The houses are universally 
built of logs or trunks of large trees, notched 
at each end, and closely fitted together; the 
interstices being well stuffed with moss. The 
better rooms are lined with neatly planed trans- 
verse boards, as is also the ceiling : they are often 
extremely neat, the Norwegians being admirable 
carpenters and manipulators of wood in all 
forms. 

Their houses are not more different in their 
material, than they are in their general arrange- 
ment, from ours. The several apartments, in- 
stead of being under one common roof, are 
portioned off into separate dwellings. That 
occupied by the family is usually distinct from 
the rooms destined for travellers, or visiters. 
The kitchen monopolizes another floor : then 
there are distinct apartments for the labourers, 
for the loom, &c. : and above all, there is 



IN NORWAY. 79 

invariably attached to the poorest, as well as 
richest, bonder's residence, a store-house, sup- 
ported upon pillars, to keep out the mice ; 
whereto the housewifely matrons and daughters 
may be seen tripping, a hundred times a day, 
in all weathers, and returning laden with the 
dainties that are safely deposited there. Every 
farm-house has also its barn, which is entered 
by an inclined plane, broad enough to admit 
a cart with its load of hay: and besides the 
various other outbuildings, of divers designa- 
tions, ample accommodation must necessarily 
be provided for the cattle that are entirely 
confined to them during the long dreary months 
of winter. 

Hence a Norwegian farm-house resembles a 
hamlet more than the dwelling of a single 
family : and besides, as the size and appearance 
of his residence is a great subject of national 
pride, the bonder is fond of making yearly 
additions, as his family or means increase : a 
fancy, which the abundance of materials and 



80 TWO SUMMERS 

the peculiarity of Norwegian architecture, 
enable him easily to indulge. It might be 
expected that this style of building, combined 
with the usual bed-furniture in which sheep- 
skins and musty hay act a principal part, must 
afford a grand harbour for insects of the most 
noxious kinds. I must, however, confess, that 
although I have occasionally suffered more 
from their attacks in Norway, than in any 
country except Sicily, there were not in general 
so many studies for the entomologist, as I 
should have anticipated: the winged vermin 
were much more troublesome. Against them, 
or the prying curiosity of human intruders, 
there is no protection ; the rooms being uni- 
versally on the ground floor, with no curtains 
either to the bed or windows, and with several 
doors of communication. 

Moreover, the store cupboard of the house- 
hold is almost always in the principal room 
allotted to the stranger, which authorizes the 
hostess and all her belongings to enter at will : 



IN NORWAY. 81 

a right of which they avail themselves with a 
freedom quite subversive of an Englishman's 
idea of the sanctity of his castle. Neither can 
I omit to mention, that wood is so good a 
conductor of sound, and the partitions are so 
thin, that all noises throughout the house are 
distinctly heard, to a degree that puts sleep 
out of the question, until use or fatigue have 
rendered the traveller invulnerable to all such 
annoyances. 

But I will not frighten my reader by detailing 
any more of these domestic plagues. From 
what was before said of the Norwegian system 
of posting, it will be readily understood, that 
it is impossible to obtain horses at the different 
stations, without waiting a considerable time, 
unless they be previously ordered. This is 
done by means of a Forbud, which, in fact, is 
abolutely necessary in order to travel with any 
degree of comfort or expedition. Printed 
forms called " Forbud-sedler," can be obtained 
at all the towns ; and are easily understood, 

E*3 



82 TWO SUMMERS 

and filled up. The requisite number of these 
papers, mentioning the horses required, and 
the hours at which they must be ready, at the 
several stations, is committed to the first Post- 
master, by whom it is regularly transmitted 
through the intended line ; each retaining only 
the paper addressed to himself. Whether the 
messenger walks or rides, he is paid for after 
the rate of a single horse : and very little extra 
being charged for a peasant's cart, the heavy 
baggage can be sent on by it, provided (let me 
repeat) it be packed and cased against very 
rough usage. 

In making out the Forbud, not less than 
four hours per Norwegian mile must be allowed 
for its very dilatory progress. The Forbud 
travels indeed by night as well as by day : but 
it necessarily has to wait a long time at each 
station, especially in the night time; and as 
the driver receives no remuneration, beyond 
the tariff for his horse, and has no one to watch 
him, he cannot be expected to drive his own 



IN NORWAY. 83 

beast very rapidly. I also consider that an 
hour and half per mile must be calculated for 
the traveller's own rate of going. I am well 
aware that many of my countrymen reckon 
upon accomplishing a Norwegian mile per 
hour ; and where both horses and roads are 
good, it may very possibly be effected in one 
hour, and a quarter. Still, taking the difference 
of horses, and the variety of roads into consi- 
deration, together with the delays in changing, 
I feel assured from a long experience, that the 
rate I have mentioned is as much as can be 
generally calculated on, with justice to all 
parties. 

Indeed, nothing has contributed so much 
to injure the good feeling of the Norwegians 
towards the English, as the character they 
have acquired (not without foundation,) for 
furious driving. The Norwegian horse is 
hardy, active, good tempered, and sure footed : 
but like all the domesticated animals of this 
country, he is diminutive ; and, being fed on 



84 TWO SUMMERS 

nothing but grass, of course, is incapable of 
great rates of speed. Yet, forgetting this, 
many of our countrymen will most unfeelingly 
flog the poor little ponies, as if they never had 
had a horse of their own, or a whip in their 
hand before : and the Norwegian b6ing remark- 
ably fond of his horse, this unjustifiable conduct 
leads to the most angry altercations,, and 
lasting dislike. Surely it is more consonant 
to right feeling and justice, especially when 
one considers the trifle paid for the use of the 
farmer's horse, to start an hour sooner, or ar- 
ive an hour later, rather than inflict a serious 
injury on what is to him a most valuable animal; 
at the risk too not only of a personal quarrel, 
but of exciting a strong prejudice against one's 
country. 

For the benefit of such travellers as are not 
swayed by motives like these, it is as well to 
mention that the Norwegian laws for the pro- 
tection of the farmer are sufficiently severe. If 
upon arriving at the next station, he complain 



IN NORWAY. 85 

of ill usage to himself or horse, his complaint 
must be examined into and decided, before the 
Post-master dare supply horses for the next 
stage. If the horse has been injured, the Post- 
master summons a jury of the neighbouring far- 
mers, who assess the damage ; and until that 
be paid, the traveller cannot proceed. He can, 
of course, appeal afterwards to a higher court ; 
but few would encounter the trouble, with the 
very doubtful chance of a reversal of the verdict. 
Many of the Day-books show that this law is 
not altogether a dead letter in the case of 
Englishmen. At each station a Day-book is 
kept, in which the traveller is required to enter 
his name, date of arrival, destination, &c, to- 
gether with any complaints he may have to 
make. This book is submitted every month to 
the Foged, or Amtmann ; and strict cognizance 
is taken of all complaints, that are written in 
the language of the country ; but in that only : so 
that it is often highly amusing to read long 
grievances stated in most eloquent English, 



86 TWO SUMMERS 

with a brief notification, in Norsk, to the above 
effect, appended. 

I have mentioned how much smaller the 
horses are, than with us : their colours also, 
are not such as are the most common in Eng- 
land; bay, or brown, or black, being by no 
means so usual as dun, chesnut, or white. The 
cows bear a near resemblance to the Alderney 
breed, and are, likewise, very diminutive. 
Equally dwarfish are the sheep, which, both in 
size and shape, are not unlike those on the 
Island of Portland. The pigs are, without 
exception, the ugliest I have anywhere seen, 
being gaunt, long-legged, high-boned, bristly, 
and half-famished. I may add, that the little 
of their flesh I have tasted, did not belie their 
appearance. 

In speaking of national characteristics, every 
one is guided in his opinion by the most 
marked individual examples, that come under 
his observation. I have heard considerable 
difference of opinion respecting the bodily and 



IN NORWAY. 87 

mental qualities of tlie Norwegians. In my 
judgment, they are a remarkably fine pea- 
santry, above the ordinary stature, good looking, 
strong and hardy. There is a decided im- 
provement of appearance, as one advances 
Northwards ; and beyond Trondhjem, especially 
in Naumdal, there is a very unusual proportion 
of female beauty. 

Perhaps, it is not without justice, that the 
Norwegians are accused of slowness in their 
ideas, equally as in their corporal movements : 
and from their isolated position they are ne- 
cessarily contracted, more, however, in their 
information than their mental capacity. They 
do not seem readily to comprehend any thing 
out of the sphere of their limited experience ; 
and exhibit inordinate wonderment and admira- 
tion at every thing strange or new to them. 
On the other hand, they show considerable in- 
telligence with respect to the things within 
their reach ; and if not gifted with much ori- 
ginal genius, are excellent followers and imi- 



88 TWO SUMMERS 

tators : of which, for example, they have given 
sufficient proof in the too great readiness 
with which they have copied the implements of 
Fly-fishing. They are patient, industrious ; 
loyal, and brave ; sincere lovers of truth, and 
of liberty; in the highest degree, hospitable 
towards strangers; and kindly affectioned to- 
wards each other. I scarcely ever saw two 
Norwegians quarrel together, even with words : 
and perfect strangers, when they meet on the 
road, invariably interchange a friendly saluta- 
tion and remark. 

I should say that they are a generally moral, 
but not a deeply religious people. I wish I 
could add, that I thought them exempt from 
the besetting sin of Northern nations : but 
though I did not meet with many habitual 
drunkards, very few, that possessed the means 
of indulgence, seemed able to resist the temp- 
tation of an idle Sabbath evening, or a chris- 
tening, or a visit to the neighbouring town, or 
fair, to drink more than was good for them. 



IN NORWAY. 89 

The neighbourhood of large towns exercises 
the same corrupting influence here, as else- 
where : and it is, indeed, sad to see the peasants 
returning with their empty carts from Chris- 
tiania, or Trondhjem, in the worst state of 
intoxication. But in the interior, habitual 
drunkenness is rare : almost the only excep- 
tions I remember, were two innkeepers of 
low caste. 

On the whole, we may safely say that the good 
preponderates much over the evil in the Norwe- 
gian character. It is, moreover, what one so 
much likes to see, idiosyncratic ; marked with 
well pronounced features of its own, not a bas- 
tard intermixture of all the bad, and a few of 
the good qualities of its neighbours, like the 
Belgian. The Norwegians pride themselves not 
only on their ancient connexion with, but 
also on their national resemblance to English- 
men : and doubtless, making due allowance 
for the immense difference of position and 
advantages of the two people, there is at bottom 



90 



TWO SUMMERS 



a strong similarity, in most important particu- 
lars. Long may they sympathize with, and 
stand by each other ! They are the sons of 
Liberty, and are bound by every tie of interest 
as well as feeling, to be her defenders. 



IN NORWAY. 



91 



CHAPTER III. 

General character of Country : Mountains ; Fosses ; Vallies— = 
Farms : Cultivation ; Ssetters, or Hill pasture ; the Fjelder ; 
or Mountain ranges — Fjords — Forests : Varieties of trees ; 
Abundance of wood ; Mode of felling and floating timber ; 
Fruit trees ; Wild fruits — Loveliness of summer nights — 
Mode of living and farming adapted to climate — Rapidity 
of vegetation — Incessant labour in summer ; Repose in 
winter — No manufactures — Attachment to native country. 

Norway may be described in general terms as 
a vast collection of mountains, disposed in clus- 
ters or chains, and divided by long deep vallies, 
through which the drainage of the country 
rushes in very large and very rapid rivers. 

There is scarcely any level land to be seen 
from Lindesnses to North Cape. In traversing 
the whole length of the country, the road, if 
not carried along a Fjord, or over a Mountain, 
almost invariably passes through noble vallies, 



92 TWO SUMMERS 

walled in by lofty rocks, dark with Scotch and 
spruce firs. Above them, rise the higher chains 
covered with perpetual snow: these are, how- 
ever, seldom visible, though at no great distance, 
in consequence of the extreme narrowness and 
depth of the vallies. 

I shall have occasion hereafter to allude more 
particularly to the formation of these moun- 
tains. I will only here remark, that they all 
belong to the older rocks, such as the Gneiss 
and Slate Families : and as might be expected 
from the well known hardness and irregular 
contortions of that class, they frequently form 
barriers across the course of the streams ; 
thereby occasioning either Lakes, or waterfalls, 
called in Norway, Fosses. These Fosses are one 
of the most peculiar, as well as picturesque 
features of Norwegian scenery. Some of them, 
as the Voring Foss, and the Rjukan Foss, are 
extremely high: but the greater number are 
not so remarkable for their height, as for their 
immense body of water, and the savage gran- 



IN NORWAY. 93 

deur that accompanies them. They are usually 
environed on either side by abrupt rocks, that 
have evidently been worn and torn asunder by 
the long action of the torrent; while below 
them is a huge basin excavated by the same 
irresistible agent, 

It is comparatively seldom that the large 
rivers fall perpendicularly : they more fre- 
quently sweep in a succession of tremendous 
waves over the opposing ledge, which generally 
presents a long, irregular inclined plane; or 
else tumble down it in a hundred broken cata- 
tacts. The splendid water-power afforded by 
the Norwegian Fosses has been by no means 
neglected. Wherever it is at all possible, Saw- 
mills are boldly projected into the very centre 
of the cataract, that threatens at each moment 
inevitably to annihilate them. 

Often, also, (as for instance at Honefoss, near 
Klekkan,) long wooden bridges are thrown 
across the face of the Fall, from rock to rock, 
with an effect scarcely conceivable. Standing 



\ 



94 TWO SUMMERS 

on the tottering planks, one sees high overhead 
a wide flood, of which our tame British rivers 
convey no idea, rushing down in foaming wrath, 
as if about, in the next moment, to carry away 
not only man's puny works, but the firm set 
barriers of nature. Broken and baffled by a 
thousand rocks, it angrily jostles by them; 
sweeps in whitened foam scarcely a foot be- 
neath the frail fabric that vibrates to its fury ; 
and dashing, bounding, roaring, casts its head- 
long waters into the seething caldron below; 
where they boil up again in endless eddies, 
whirling round and round with them enormous 
trunks of trees unable to escape the perpetual 
torment. 

The principal Vallies are narrow in propor- 
tion to their length ; varying from half a mile 
to at most two miles in width : when broader, 
they are generally occupied by Lakes. They 
are filled with a fine silt and gravel, derived 
from the attrition of the higher mountains, and 
deposited by water. This soil constitutes the 



IN NORWAY. 95 

cultivated land of the interior ; and is almost 
universally disposed in a succession of ascending 
terraces, which undeniably attest a correspond- 
ing succession of depressions of the water's level, 
produced in some instances, perhaps, by the 
elevation of the land, hereafter to be referred 
to, but oftener evidently by the bursting of 
the barriers already described as so frequently 
curbing the course of Norwegian rivers. 

Upon these terraces are situated the Gaards, 
or Farm-houses, generally isolated from each 
other, but from consisting of the clusters of 
buildings, before mentioned, having each the 
appearance of a little hamlet. Immediately 
adjoining to the Gaard is usually the Hop- 
garden; rarely any other, for vegetables or 
fruit ; and all round, wherever the soil and lay 
of the ground permit, are unenclosed patches 
of rye, and barley, and potatoes. Behind the 
cultivated land, the hills, or more properly rocks, 
rise steeply, clothed with dark pines, intermixed 
with birch, and alder, and occasional mountain- 



96 TWO SUMMERS 

ash. Not unfrequently they are so precipitous, 
that not even these hardy trees can cast anchor ; 
but instead, streams fed by the melting snows 
above, trickle down their naked faces. Ever 
and anon they are rent asunder by lateral 
ravines, down which roars a torrent, whose 
wild, unruly waters are taught to turn the rude 
mill usually attached to each Gaard. Wher- 
ever a patch of soil can be won from the barren 
acclivity, there is often seen a green little nook 
of potatoes and barley, smiling cheerily amid 
the gloomy forest, with a humble log-hut, be- 
longing to the Hausmand, or labourer on the 
farm below. 

Ascending from the valley, we soon come to 
the limits within which trees can grow in these 
Northern latitudes. Their region is succeeded 
by the district of mountain pasture, which is of 
essential' importance to the Norwegian, as it 
alone enables him to support his cattle during 
the summer months. Each farmer has a cer- 
tain extent of hill pasture, generally from five 



IN NORWAY. 97 

to fifteen miles distant from his Gaard ; where 
he keeps an establishment, called in Norsk, 
a " Saetter, " exactly similar to the Swiss Cha- 
lets. Above, and intermixed with this district, 
rise the mountains covered with perpetual snow, 
the inexhaustible feeders of Norge's thousand 
streams, the summer home of the Reindeer, 
the Bear, and the Elk. 

It will be readily conceived that a country 
such as this must contain much grandeur, if 
not sublimity; and such is undoubtedly the 
case, although I must once for all confess that 
in all my wanderings through Norway, I have 
seen nothing to equal the unapproachable ma- 
jesty of the Swiss Alps. Indeed, the Tourist, 
who has not penetrated into the Province of 
Bergen, or Bomsdalen, will be almost inclined 
to decide that beauty, rather than sublimity, 
is the character of Norwegian scenery. He 
cannot, indeed, help often meeting with scenes 
of striking loneliness, and desolate grandeur : 
but if he follow only the usual track through 

VOL. I. F 



98 TWO SUMMERS 

Gulbrandsdal, and Hedemark, he will still of- 
tener be greeted witli pictures of unexpected 
softness and loveliness, decked in all the brief, 
but delicious charms of a Northern summer. 
Not only along the lovely shores of southern 
Christiania's Fjord, but even of Hyperborean 
Trondhjem, or of Mjosen's Lake, I have 
enjoyed a thousand scenes of placid, tranquil 
beauty, and harmonious combinations, for 
which, I own, I was not prepared : while on 
the other hand, the much talked of passage of 
the Dovre Fjeld, though in full view of Snee- 
haettan, will scarcely impress an Alpine tra- 
veller with an overwhelming idea of the 
sublimity of Norwegian Mountains. 

Sneehsettan was until within these few years 
acknowledged to be the loftiest ground in 
Northern Europe ; but it has lately been ascer- 
tained that the highest point of the Hurungarne 
Mountains exceeds it by a few feet : each is a 
little under 8000 feet above the sea. The 
highest mountains are confined within a dis- 



IN NORWAY. 99 

trict stretching irregularly to the South-west of 
the Dovre Fjeld : to the North and South-east 
they sink very considerably. 

The shores of the Bothnian Gulf are very flat, 
but rise towards the chain of the Kjolen, which 
separates Sweden from Norway. The Kjolen 
range cannot, however, boast either grandeur, 
or loftiness, except in isolated points : and 
in the few portions of it where the snow lies 
throughout the year, it is rather in patches, 
than in continuous tracts, of any extent. 
This is also the general character of the moun- 
tains north of the Dovre Fjeld: and hence 
these two elevated districts form the summer 
feeding ground of the migratory Laplanders, 
for their domesticated Reindeer. The " Shore 
Lapps" remain tolerably stationary in the 
extreme north, during the whole year; but 
the ^Nomadic Lapps, that possess Reindeer, 
feed their herds in the summer, along cer- 
tain tracts of high lands, from Cape North, 
down nearly to Roraas. 

f 2 



100 TWO SUMMERS 

But in the district which lies principally to 
the west of the great Valley of the Mjosen, the 
Mountains rise to a far greater elevation ; 
presenting infinitely sterner and finer features : 
and containing within their extensive range 
connected fields of eternal snow, trodden only 
by the wild Reindeer, or the adventurous 
hunter. Where these mountains meet the 
Western sea, in the Province of Bergen, they 
exhibit the grandest and most peculiar scenery 
in Northern Europe. They bate nothing of 
their majestic height as they approach the 
ocean ; and at these latitudes are covered far 
down their huge sides with deep snow. Their 
forms are extremely wild and abrupt; and most 
singularly, they are so disposed as to allow 
Fjords, or narrow arms of the sea, to wind 
within their recesses, fifty, or one hundred 
miles from the line of coast. 

The Western coast is further guarded by a con- 
formable range of Islands, the northernmost 
of which, the Loffoden, are a celebrated fishing 



IN NORWAY. 101 

station : while more than one hundred miles 
out to the Westward is a bank of sunken rocks, 
equally well known to fishermen, which is said 
not only to preserve the general parallel, but even 
to follow the most marked details of the coast. 

In the Southern portions of Norway, nearly 
the same Forest trees grow, as with us; and 
in favourable situations, near the sea, even 
attain considerable size ; although the most 
southerly point, Lindesnses, is scarcely more 
than half a degree to the south of John 
o* Groat's. The beech is found about Chris- 
tiansand, and Laurvig; but I believe not so 
far North as Christiania ; where, however, oak, 
and ash, and chesnuts, and limes, &c, thrive 
well. The common elm is not, I think, very 
abundant, though usually mentioned in the 
catalogue of Norwegian trees ; I have, however, 
seen remarkably fine Scotch elms a few miles 
beyond Steenkjaer, in latitude 64°, or within 
2\ degrees of the Arctic circle. 

Vegetation evidently depends upon many 



102 TWO SUMMERS 

conditions, besides latitude, some of which to 
our ignorance seem to be arbitrary ; as being 
apparently unconnected with either aspect 
or soil. Steenkjser, and Molde, are the two 
most celebrated spots for the growth of trees 
that will not thrive in intermediate places. 
The oak ceases to be common soon after you 
leave Christiania; as does also that valuable 
tree, the ash : notwithstanding both may be 
occasionally seen in a stunted form much 
further north. The aspen and the alder thrive 
well, as far north as I have penetrated: and 
the mountain ash grows both luxuriantly and 
abundantly in certain spots along the Namsen, 
in nearly lat. 65°. 

But at any distance from the coast, and at 
any even trifling height above the sea, these 
forest trees cease almost entirely; and their 
places are monopolized by the Pine family, 
and the Birch. The two species of the former 
found here, are the furu, or Scotch fir, and 
the gran, or spruce. I have never been able 



IN NORWAY. 103 

to satisfy myself which, is the hardiest of these 
two, as sometimes the one, and sometimes the 
other, is seen occupying the highest elevations. 
Their growth appears to be influenced by 
causes, for which I could obtain no rational 
solution; whole districts being covered with 
the fir, where the spruce will not grow, 
and vice versa. On the whole, however, I 
should be inclined to conclude from the infor- 
mation I obtained, that the spruce generally 
thrives at a higher level above the sea, but 
the Scotch fir in a more Northern latitude. 

The Pine Forests constitute a very distin- 
guishing feature of Norwegian scenery. They 
universally clothe the sides and summits of 
the hills, as far as the climate allows them to 
reach ; and strike their tortuous roots into 
every crevice of rock, where the least soil can 
be found. Often are they seen, as if in defi- 
ance of the storm and torrent, anchored by 
Nature's hand in some bare projecting crag, 
or on some islet in the very centre of the cata- 



104 TWO SUMMERS 

ract, where no art of man could possibly induce 
them to exist. And to my taste, this strange 
boldness of position combines admirably with 
their tall majestic forms, and impenetrably 
dark shades, to suit them for the peculiar 
character of the wild landscapes they adorn. 
It is not until the eye has become tired by 
constant repetition, that one begins to complain 
of the real stiffness of their forms, and the 
monotony of their colours; whereof we are 
first made sensibly aware, by the exquisite 
pleasure, with which on our return we gaze 
on the more graceful outlines, and the more 
refreshing verdure of our own forests. 

I saw many fine trees during my Tour, but 
none of such extraordinary dimensions as to 
induce me to measure them : unless I was de- 
ceived by the scale of the surrounding scenery 
I observed, no Firs much larger than what 
I have seen in Great Britain. Indeed, on the 
exposed mountains, and rocky soil of Norway, 
they by no means attain so great a height, as 



IN NORWAY. 105 

in the congenial sands, and along the protected 
shores of the Baltic. On the other hand, their 
growth being slower, the texture is closer, and 
the timber more valuable : it is even said, that 
there is a very decided superiority in the timber 
cut on the Northern face, over that of the 
Southern side of the same mountain. Near 
the main lines of communication the trees are 
scarcely ever seen of any considerable size, since 
they are invariably cut down as soon as they 
will remunerate the labour and the carriage. 
In the interior they are of comparatively little 
value : every one cuts what he requires for his 
house, or fuel, or other purposes ; and the rest 
are left to rot where old age, or the storm has 
laid them. 

It is well, indeed, for the inhabitants of these 
Northern climes that they have such an abun- 
dance of wood ; for there being no coal, the 
country would be otherwise untenable for man 
during the long winter. Besides, not only is 
it so universally employed in the construction 
f 3 



106 TWO SUMMERS 

of houses, that I question if there are fifty 
in the whole country, built entirely or chiefly, 
of any other material (and those only in the 
largest towns, and of recent date) ; but it is 
also used for a thousand purposes, for which 
one who has not visited Norway would hardly 
think it could be made available. By a dex- 
terous manipulation it is rendered the universal 
substitute for ropes : the rowlocks of the boat, 
tethers of the animals, springs for closing gates, 
and innumerable other things, are formed of 
it : and I have even seen light poles used as 
stays for the masts of the sailing Vessels on 
the Mjosen. Then the felling, and sawing, 
and transmission down the streams, of such 
wood as is employed in commerce, afford a 
very considerable source of employment to a 
large portion of the natives. 

The " Travels of a Norway deal/ 2 before it 
reaches its destination, would astonish many 
that unthinkingly tread upon it, in a London 
floor. Felled perhaps in the primaeval forests 



IN NORWAY. 107 

of central Norway, the trunk is dragged over 
the hardened snow in the following winter 
to the nearest stream ; in readiness to be floated 
down, as soon as returning Spring unbinds the 
waters from their frozen sleep. Then down 
many a foaming cataract, across many a torpid 
lake, along many a tributary river, must it be 
conveyed into the Gotha or the Glommen ; to 
be finally floated into the timber yards of 
Christiania, or Drammen, or Gothenborg. 

It is usual for the principal merchants of 
those towns to hire from the proprietors in the 
interior, the privilege of cutting trees in the 
forests the best suited for their purpose, at the 
rate of about two shillings for each dozen; 
besides paying for the labour. They are 
marked, and sent down in the manner de- 
scribed: and at different stations of their route, 
there are persons appointed by the respective 
merchants to assist them over the different 
obstacles they have to encounter. These men 
may often be seen, when the rivers are in flood 



108 TWO SUMMERS 

from the melting of the snows, with long hooked 
poles in their hands, directing the timber over 
the Fosses, and along the tortuous channels : 
their labour is severe, and they are usually 
paid one mark (or ten-pence) a day, without 
victuals ; or half a mark, if provided with food. 
Few labourers are paid so well in Norway, 
except during the height of harvest. 

On such rivers as are very wild, and have 
many falls in their course, the logs are ne- 
cesarily cut shorter than on the more tranquil 
streams of the Baltic ; which acts greatly to 
the disadvantage of the Norwegian trade. The 
most expensive impediments are the numerous 
lakes ; across which they are generally floated 
on a rude raft, with a still ruder sail, or not 
unfrequently with a leafy birch tree as its 
substitute : on the more extensive lakes, such 
as L. Wenern, the merchants employ their 
own vessels to tow them across ; and in the 
Tyri Fjord there is even a steam-tug. Steam- 
ers are also about to be introduced on the 



IN NORWAY. 109 

Mjosen. All these obstacles cause so much 
delay, that many of the trees do not reach their 
destination at Christiania, or Gothenborg, before 
the third summer after being felled. 

While speaking about trees, I must not 
omit briefly to mention that Fruit trees, no less 
than Forest trees, evince a predilection for 
Scandinavia, over the corresponding latitude 
of our Island. All the common fruits thrive 
remarkably well, not only at Christiania, but 
much further North : and I have even seen 
apricots and plums ripened in the open air. 
Many excellent, and some peculiar, kinds of 
apples and pears flourish throughout Southern 
Norway; whereas I remember to have been 
shown as the tenth wonder of the world, an 
apple that had obtained a crab-like degree of 
maturity, in a sheltered garden near Cape 
Wrath, at least a degree South of Christiania. 

Our gooseberries, currants, and raspberries 
are found wild in all suitable situations. The 
latter, as also the mountain strawberries, are 



110 TWO SUMMERS 

as finely flavoured as any I ever ate. There are 
also many other wild fruits, such as the cran- 
berry, bilberry, cloudberry, and other similar 
fruits found on our moorlands. But deservedly 
the most celebrated is the Moltebaer {chamce- 
morus arcticus, or Northern ground mulberry). 
It is a low shrub, fond of a marshy soil, with 
a large dark raspberry-shaped leaf, and its 
fruit not unlike that of the mulberry, but 
of a rich golden yellow colour, tinged with 
pink that fades as it ripens. Its flavour is 
peculiar and delicious; and in my opinion 
is heightened by the addition of sugar and 
cream, or by some of those confectionary 
secrets, which the matrons of the North so well 
understand, and which our grandmothers did 
not despise. I believe this pleasant fruit is not 
found in Scotland, or the Orkneys ; nor even 
in the Shetland Islands. 

The difference between the vegetation of 
Norway, and of Scotland, is, indeed, very re- 
markable ; and cannot help striking the most 



IN NORWAY. Ill 

cursory observer. In some respects, it may 
depend on causes beyond our ken : at the same 
time much, of the former's apparent superiority 
may be explained by considerations derived 
from its very excess of Northern latitude. 
The Norwegian winter is long and severe : 
but then many seeds do not require to be 
sown until the spring; while many plants 
and trees are so protected by nature, as to 
suffer little from cold ; during a period of sus- 
pended germination, similar to the hybernation 
of animals in the same climate. 

Again, the Summer is, alas ! very brief, if we 
reckon the number of days from the last of 
the previous, to the first frost of the succeeding 
winter : for we cannot talk of springs or au- 
tumns in this latitude. But, then, each day 
may be almost counted as double, since for 
three months the sun shines uninterruptedly, 
with oblique, but still very powerful rays upon 
the earth, which thus has scarcely any time to 
cool. This, added to the fact, that the energies 



112 TWO SUMMERS 

of vegetation have never been weakened 'by 
the occasional deceptive warmth of our winters, 
and perhaps also to the fertilizing effects of 
thawing snow, causes a rapidity of growth that 
is quite startling. It seems as if the seeds are 
scarcely put in the ground, (only just cleared 
of snow) when their green shoots begin to 
appear : in a few days they have attained a 
considerable height : in a few weeks they are 
ready for the sickle. On revisiting a place 
after the lapse of a fortnight, during the height 
of a Northern summer, it is difficult to believe 
it to be the same spot, so totally are the features 
of the cultivated parts changed, in what ap- 
pears so brief a period. 

It is to this circumstance of its lying dormant 
and protected during the winter, and requiring, 
only for a short time, a greater degree of warmth 
than even the North of England can supply, 
that I am inclined to attribute the fact of the 
Hop being found, as I have seen it thriving, 
very nearly as far North as lat. 65°. However, 



IN NORWAY. 113 

it will soon be decided whether the Norwegian 
Hop be, as it has been supposed, a different 
and hardier species, as I brought a good many 
roots home with me, which have been planted 
in Scotland. 

If I may judge by my own experience, I 
should say there are few circumstances con- 
nected with a Scandinavian Tour, that afford 
deeper enjoyment, not unmixed with surprise, 
than the exquisite beauty of the short summer 
nights. It has been beautifully said by one 
of their native Poets, that, "At Midsummer, 
on Norway's hills, the blush of Morning kisses 
the blush of Evening and so slight is the 
interval at this season between the fading of 
the setting sun's rays a trifle to the West of 
North, and the rapid reappearance of his orient 
beams, as little to the East of that point, that 
this pause between the two sweetest periods of 
•the day might be compared to the balmy breath 
that parts the coral hps of the sleeping infant. 

Those few brief hours are, indeed, surprisingly 



114 TWO SUMMERS 

lovely in the further North; I say in the 
further North, for it is not until the Dovre 
Fjeld is crossed, that their full charm can be 
felt. On the Southern side of the Dovre 
Chain, the nights are only shorter and lighter 
than those of the Scottish Highlands : when 
that barrier is passed, they seem to assume 
an entirely new character. There, at that 
season, the course of the sun is so oblique to 
the plane of the horizon, that while he never 
rises high in the zenith, he also never sinks 
far beneath view. Unlike, therefore, "the set 
of Tropic Sun, who sudden sinks, and all is 
night," the glorious orb, for some time before 
and after the summer solstice, remains so few 
degrees below the horizon, that the refraction 
of its rays preserves a perpetual twilight : how 
holier, sweeter far than garish day, and yet 
how different from our own Midsummer nights, 
sweet though they be ! The light is strong 
enough to enable one to read or write in the 
interior of a room : and stars even of the first 



IN NORWAY. 115 

magnitude are invisible. Yet is it a chastened 
mellow, light ; not casting strong shadows, but 
throwing a golden mantle of tranquil repose 
over every object it touches, and beautifies. 

It is impossible to describe the peculiar 
effect it produces not only upon the eternal 
snows of Sneehsettan, or, "the Pine forest's 
immemorial shade," or the silvery cataract's 
ceaseless turmoil ; but still more upon a sleep- 
ing city, like Trondhjem. The buildings he so 
palpably stretched before the eye, yet so har- 
moniously blended together, their picturesque 
points heightened, their harsher defects softened 
down; the vast Fjord expanding distinctly 
without a wave or ripple to the feet of the 
distant blue mountains ; the boats rocking 
idly by the shore ; the scenes of labour silent 
as the grave ; all the records of Nature and of 
man so perceptible, yet so still : it needs but to 
follow the musings of the imagination to fancy 
oneself alone in a new world, or realizing the 
conceptions our childhood formed of Fairyland. 



116 TWO SUMMERS 

However dreamy such fancies may appear to 
others, not conversant with these latitudes, 
they portray but faintly the emotions I have 
felt on those lovely Northern nights, which are 
classed in my memory of memories with the 
delicious evenings of Naples and Baise. 

It is a necessary, but striking consequence 
of this perpetual light, that the Traveller's 
arrangements, as to his journey, or repose, 
are totally independent of the considerations 
that would guide him elsewhere. Midday 
being as favourable for sleep as midnight, and 
the latter being as well adapted for travelling 
as the former, he is entirely governed by his 
own convenience, or powers of endurance. 
Not only the Tourist, but also the Farmer, 
often finds it advisable to rest during the 
sultry part of the day, on account as well of the 
heat as of the flies, that torment the poor 
horses to death ; and to work at night. 

It is very interesting to witness the modifi- 
cations which the peculiarities of the climate 



IN NORWAY. 117 

have produced upon the condition, the habits, 
the national character of the Norwegian. His 
summer is, indeed, no season of repose. The 
period is so short within which the crops must 
be put into the ground, must come to matu- 
rity, be reaped, and secured, as well as provision 
be made for the maintenance of his stock 
during six or seven winter months, that he 
cannot afford to'be idle for a single day. His 
rye is sown early in November; in which month 
he also kills and salts a certain number of 
sheep and cows, according to the size of his 
herds, and family ; and thus prepares for the 
long season, during which no out-door work 
can be done, except felling trees in the forest, 
and bringing heavy loads over the frozen snow. 
He has, therefore, plenty of time to attend to 
his cattle, which must be entirely fed in-doors, 
the whole of these dreary months, when every 
trace of vegetation is hidden under several feet 
of snow. 

This is also the season for making and 



118 TWO SUMMERS 

mending all articles of personal and domestic 
requirement. There are no public manufac- 
tures in Norway ; neither are they required, as 
each family supplies all its own wants, with the 
sole exception of articles of colonial produce. 
Of course every thing on this system is neces- 
sarily made badly, and at an inordinate expense 
of labour in comparison with machinery : but 
then, that labour, costs nothing, since it could 
not be otherwise devoted ; and the employment 
is evidently beneficial in many ways. 

In every house there is a loom, and working 
room ; of which the sleepy Traveller is too often 
reminded early and late, by the incessant 
annoyance of its monotonous, jarring rattle. 
Every operation, from the production of the 
raw material, to the last stage of its manufac- 
ture, is performed at home. The women dress 
the flax of their own fields, and the wool of 
their own flocks, and spin it, and dye it, and 
weave it : transforming it afterwards into those 

substantial articles of clothing, which are more 

I 



IN NORWAY. 119 

suitable to a Norwegian climate, than the 
elegant inventions of a Parisian milliner. 
Neither are the men idle. Every Bonder (for so 
the peasant proprietors, or yeomeii, are called) 
is a tolerable shoemaker and tailor, and an 
excellent carpenter. Their houses, both inter- 
nally and externally, are universally made and 
fitted up by themselves, with great skill and 
neatness. 

The Winter, however, is not a season of 
unmitigated labour : if ever the Norwegian 
enjoys any relaxation, it is then. The period 
about Christmas especially is the great time for 
merry-making, which too often, I fear, degene- 
rates into intemperance. And thus they pass 
the depth of winter. 

At last the sun begins to peep for a few 
minutes, and then for an hour or two, above a 
well known hill, on a certain well remembered 
day — and how joyful must that sight appear! 
In these deep valleys, the sun is not visible 
unless it attain a very considerable altitude 



120 TWO SUMMERS 

above the horizon: I know Gaards, to the 
North of Trondhjem, which do not obtain a 
glimpse of him for fifteen weeks. Then soon 
the snows begin to melt, and the rivers to flood, 
and the green grass to appear ; and man and 
beast are called forth from their long confine- 
ment, as into a fresh world. 

There is now no time to be lost : for here 
most truly does " Winter lingering chill the lap 
of May and before the end of August frosts 
may be expected, which are often severe enough 
to destroy all the hopes of the husbandman. 
The whole process of cultivation must, therefore, 
be compressed into an inconceivably short 
time : but so rapid is Northern vegetation, from 
the causes I have above mentioned, that no 
fear need be entertained that the crops will not 
ripen, unless they be nipped by the much 
dreaded early frosts, which, for the last five or 
six years, have been deplorably prevalent in the 
Northern Provinces, and have occasioned 
incalculable distress. 



IN NORWAY. 121 

A trifling quantity of wheat is grown in the 
South, and I have seen a few patches of it even 
near Trondbjem; but the chief part of the 
wheat that is consumed, is imported from 
Denmark. Rye is a general crop; and the 
species of barley, called bear, is universal ; as 
are also potatoes. Fifty years ago this useful 
vegetable was almost unknown ; but large fields 
of it are now to be seen on every farm, nearly 
as far as the North Cape, thriving remarkably 
well. A little flax, and a few hops, with still 
fewer kohl rabi, are the only other crops of any 
consequence cultivated in the interior. 

They must all, of course, be put into the 
ground immediately that it is fit to receive 
them. Besides which, there is mill-work, (the 
streams being then all full from the melting 
of the snows,) and other employment about 
the farm, sufficient to occupy all their leisure, 
until the hay harvest begins. The cattle, 
as soon as they are released from their long 
confinement, graze at first round about the 

VOL. I. G 



122 TWO SUMMERS 

Gaard ; but as early in June as the snow 
begins to disappear from the higher grounds, 
they are despatched to the upland district of 
the Ssetters, before described. 

Where that important appendage to a Nor- 
wegian Farm is distant, and possesses an ample 
range, the herds are left there the whole summer, 
under the care of the most useless women and 
children, attended by faithful dogs : but where 
the Saetter is near, or confined in extent, they 
occasionally come down for a fortnight to allow 
the grass to grow again. 

As soon as the hay harvest begins (usually in 
the North from the 10th to 15th of July) there 
is no cessation of labour until winter. I never 
saw people work harder than the Norwegians do 
at this season. Labourers for hire are very 
scarce, and the poverty of the Bonder rarely 
allows him* to employ any : consequently, each 
member of the family that has the least strength 
whatever, is compelled to toil to the utmost 
extent of that strength. Every day the weather 



IN NORWAY. 123 

permits, they " slay grass/-* as they call it, turn 
it over, and house it in log huts built for' the 
purpose, in what we should consider a very 
green state. They never at this season work 
less than sixteen hours, and often more ; 
taking four or five hours rest in the night time, 
and a couple of hours during the day. Their 
hay ground (for I cannot call it meadows) 
consists of little patches, sometimes inter- 
spersed among the corn lands, or upon slopes 
where the plough cannot reach ; or of a few 
roods along the river ; or of upland glades in 
the depth of the Forests, where the reaping 
hook only, and not the scythe, can be used. 
Hence the labour required is very dispropor- 
tionate to the quantity secured : and there is 
consequently, as I said, no time for repose. 

The last hay is rarely housed before the 
corn is ready for the sickle : and if they are 
fortunate enough to secure this, and dig up 
their potatoes, uninjured, they must imme- 
diately put the plough in requisition, and sow 
g 2 



124 TWO SUMMERS 

mm 

their rye, before the impending snow and frost 
throw all field operations out of question, and 
consign them to their long winter's repose. 
Any spare time that they may have is fully 
occupied in stripping the trees of their leaves^ 
and in making bundles of the more tender 
branches, to assist in supporting the cattle in 
winter. Artificial food being unknown, and 
the period being so long during which nothing 
whatever to eat can be got out of doors, every 
thing is made use of, that is in the slightest 
degree calculated to keep life in the poor 
animals : and miserable enough do they turn 
out from their protracted imprisonment ; but 
they soon fatten after they reach the Ssetter. 

What wonder then is it, if we consider such 
a scene of unmitigated toil, that when one 
condoles with the Norwegian Peasant over his 
tedious, dreary winter, he should almost invari- 
ably reply, It is the happiest season of the 
year ! With him it is the season not only of 
feasting and social enjoyment, but of a cessa- 



IN NORWAY. 125 

tion from labour carried to the utmost powers 
of endurance. Clad in his impenetrable furs, 
in the clear bracing air of his Northern climate, 
and lighted by the coruscations of the Northern 
skies, he envies not the dubious light, and raw 
cold of our winter days; but thanks Provi- 
dence for blessing him with so much happier a 
season. 



126 



TWO SUMMERS 



CHAPTER IV. 

Different routes : Teilemarken, Bergen, Romsdalen ; to Trond- 
hjem, by Hedemarken and Ttoraas, by Guldbrandsdalen 
and the Dovre Fj eld— Money to be taken — Language — 
Horses — Roads — Ironworks of Barum — Krogkleven — Geo- 
logy — Splendid prospect — Ringeriget— First introduction to 
Norwegian Fare — Excursion to Kongsberg — Honefoss — Tyri 
Fjord — Excellence of Ferries — Cobalt Works and Serpen- 
tine at Modum — Falls at Hougsund — Costume of Peasants — 
Traveller's delays — A Midnight Walk — -Kongsberg — Silver 
Mines — Ambuscade for a Bear — Night in the Forest — Lake 
Mjosen — Guldbrandsdal— Pass of Kringelen, and Slaughter of 
Colonel Sinclair and his Highlanders — Laurgaard — A Bivouac 
on Rundene, to shoot Wild Reindeer — The Ssetter Life — 
Splendour of Mountain Views — An Escape — A bad Shot — 
The Dovre Fjeld — Jerkin — Angling — Botany — Sneehsettan 
— Kongsvold — The Vaar-stieg — Peasants travelling — Vale 
of the Guul — First view of Trondhjem — Mme. Homberg, 
and Louis Philippe, 

I trust that the preceding sketch may give the 
Tourist, who takes these volumes as his guide, a 
general idea of what he has to expect ; and that 



IN NORWAY. 127 

he will now be better prepared to accompany 
me into the interior. His course must depend 
very much upon his time,, and his objects. As 
to the former, he ought to be at Christiania 
by the very beginning of June, ready to take 
advantage of the first settled weather. As to 
the latter, if he be in search of the picturesque, 
his points will be Teilemarken and the Gousta 
Fjeld; Bergen, Hardanger Fjord, and the 
Fille Fjeld; Romsdalen, Dovre Fjeld, and 
Trondhjem. It is difficult to attain all these 
objects in a single summer ; but if he make 
no delay anywhere, it is perhaps just feasible 
to accomplish them. If, on the other hand, my 
reader be a brother of the Gentle Art, he will 
either try the Southern rivers at Laurvig and 
Christiansand, and the Mandal, &c, or else 
will steer at once for my favourite, in the 
extreme North, the Namsen, the king of Salmon 
Rivers. 

At any rate, most travellers who have time, 
will visit Trondhjem in the course of their 



128 TWO SUMMERS 

tour; and I shall therefore first describe the best 
routes to it. There are two principal routes : 
one through Hedemarken, and by Roraas; 
the other through Guldbrandsdalen, and over 
the Dovre Fjeld. However as the first, though 
occasionally fine, is on the whole by no means 
so interesting a road as the other, (unless the 
Tourist's object be to shoot an elk, or to visit 
the Copper mines,) I should advise him to 
proceed to Trondhjem through Ringeriget, by 
the Western side of Mjosen, and across the 
Dovre Fjeld; returning by Molde, Roinsdalen, 
and the Eastern shore of Lake Mjosen. 

Before starting, it will be necessary to lay in 
a good supply of small money, since change 
can rarely be obtained on the road. The 
circulation of Norway may be said to be con- 
fined to paper ; so much so that I have never 
seen any coin, except as a curiosity : the 
standard is silver, in bars. The notes are 
neatly executed, and conveniently divided; 
consisting of dalers, (containing five marks, and 



IN NORWAY. 129 

equal to about four shillings English) half 
dalers, and marks, which contain twenty-four 
skillings. There are of course larger notes ; 
but the Tourist will not find those of higher 
amount than five and ten dollars of the least 
use in paying his travelling expenses. Then, 
he should have a well-filled bag of the smaller 
coin, one, two, and four skilling-pieces, made 
of mixed metal. And as a final addition to 
the preparatives already mentioned, I should 
advise him to take a parcel of the printed forms 
for the Eorbud, the best maps he can procure, 
and a Norsk Grammar, or Vocabulary. 

The language is so easy to an Englishman, 
that there is no excuse for his not learning at 
least the names of the only dozen articles, 
which there is any chance of obtaining at a 
Norwegian inn : but if he have the opportunity 
of making still further progress, he will be 
amply recompensed for the time and trouble 
bestowed, by the infinitely increased comfort 
and advantage of his Tour. I have mentioned 
g3 



130 TWO SUMMERS 

that English is very generally spoken in the 
towns, all of which are situated on the sea 
coast : but in the interior no foreign language 
will be understood, except German ; and that 
only by the Clergy, Medical, and Official men. 
Therefore, in order to travel with any degree 
of comfort it is absolutely necessary, that the 
master or man should have a tolerable acquain- 
tance with the language of the country. 

Having then duly despatched the Forbud 
to Klekkan, paid the bill, and received Mr, 
Scholter's last bow, we steer as dexterously as 
we may through the awkward passage from the 
Court-yard, and soon emerging from the ill- 
paved streets of Christiania, take the road 
to Jonserud, along the lovely shores of the 
Fjord. 

Probably the best charioteer will feel a little 
nervous at the thought of being about to drive 
some two or three hundred strange horses, 
over strange roads, through so wild a country 
as he has understood Norway to be. At least, 



IN NORWAY. 131 

such I confess, was my first feeling; but I 
rapidly got over it : and as I soon discovered 
what good-tempered, and sure-footed creatures 
the Norsk ponies are, and seldom met with any 
serious mishap, I latterly took great pleasure 
in managing them. By strictly following my 
own advice to drive temperately, I insured the 
good will of the peasants : and if any unex- 
pected difficulty occurred, a nondescript sound, 
which the Traveller must do his best to acquire, 
stopped the quiet little animals at once ; and 
in a moment we were able to jump off to their 
assistance. 

The first day's journey is hardly calculated 
to diminish any apprehensions the stranger may 
have formed. The roads round Christiania are 
abominably kept; and there are parts of the 
two first stages sufficiently precipitous to alarm 
the Tourist who is not yet accustomed to their 
belles horrmrs. However, as he advances, he 
will find the roads improve, the materials being 
better, the bottom firmer, and less injured by 



132 TWO SUMMERS 

traffic. They are entirely maintained by the 
peasants, a number of ells, proportioned to its 
size, being assigned to each farm, and marked 
along the road-side by small wooden posts. 
The law enjoins that they should be put into 
thorough repair immediately after the spring 
ploughing is finished ; but it is not very strictly 
enforced. And as the repairs consist of little 
more than throwing earth and sand into the 
lesser holes, and big stones with fir branches 
into the deeper, they cannot be expected to 
stand much traffic, or continued rains. In fine 
weather, and with a light carriage, they are 
passable enough. 

But the most annoying circumstance con- 
nected with them (next to bridges being carried 
away, and such like accidents) is the extremely 
bad line the Norwegian roads universally fol- 
low. In order to avoid injuring a little patch 
of tolerablfe soil, or to escape the least labour 
of cutting or blasting, they are carried up and 
down the most tremendous hills : and where 



IN NORWAY. 133 

that excellent guide in a mountain country, 
water, plainly points tlie best course, the 
Northern MacAdams often perversely prefer 
going out of their way, to scale unnecessary 
precipices, as if. merely to try the nerves and 
patience of the traveller. I have frequently 
been inclined to think there was as much 
truth, as humour, in the explanation given me 
by one of the most intelligent of Norway's 
sons; "How" said he, " could you expect it 
to be otherwise ? The first road maker in our 
country was the goat, who naturally always 
takes the highest ground. His track was 
followed by the cattle : theirs by man, first on 
foot, in passing from one Gaard to another, 
and next on horseback : and last of all, when 
carriages were introduced, the original track 
was only a little levelled, and a little widened ! 
How could you possibly expect it to be any 
better ? » 

Some three or four miles after leaving Chris- 
tiania, the road turning sharply to the right, 



134 TWO SUMMERS 

at once commences to ascend the mountains, 
wliicli form so marked a feature in the pros- 
pects round the Capital ; and soon enters a 
much wilder and very romantic district. The 
mountains are composed chiefly of the porphyry 
happily named Rhomboidal by Von Buch, from 
the shape of its felspathic crystals; and have 
the abrupt broken character belonging to that 
rock. In a picturesque Valley, embosomed in 
them, are situated the Iron works of Barum, 
belonging to the Viceroy, Count Wedel Jarls- 
berg, and managed by one of his sons, with 
whom I had the advantage of inspecting the 
establishment. It is not exactly on the scale 
of Merthyr Tydvil ; but appears well arranged, 
and well conducted, and capable of considerable 
extension. A large proportion of the stoves 
used in Norway are made here : the ore comes 
from Skeen and Arendal, and contains on an 
average about thirty per cent of metal, with 
enough lime in it to act as a flux. 

Something less than thirty miles from Chris- 



IN NORWAY. 135 

tiania, we come to the celebrated pass of Krog- 
kleven, an extraordinary fissure in the wall of 
porphyritic rock, down which the road passes 
at as steep an angle as is well practicable to 
carriages. It is a spot well known to Geolo- 
gists. About half way down a reddish sandstone 
is seen, apparently underlying the porphyry ; 
but it is evident that the latter has burst 
through, and partially overflowed the other, 
in a manner common to plutonic rocks. It 
is very interesting to observe the modifications 
mutually produced on each other at the point 
of junction : the rhomboidal crystals disappear 
from the porphyry ; and the sandstone, which 
at a little distance is finegrained, becomes 
there charged with rounded quartz pebbles. 

Krogkleven is however even yet more re- 
nowned for the glorious prospect obtained 
from the heights that crown it on either side. 
On his way to the South-western "Look out" 
(much the finest) the Geologist will remark 
several blocks of red sandstone lying on the 



136 TWO SUMMERS 

porphyry, which have every appearance of 
having been borne up by the rushing torrent 
of volcanic matter. The view from the summit 
unites the elements of grandeur and beauty in 
an eminent degree. You stand on the brink 
of a lofty wall of rock, the termination of the 
porphyritic range. Immediately below, at a 
depth of many hundred feet, lies an extensive 
and fertile plain, once the domain of an ancient 
chief whose name it still bears, Ringeriget, or 
" the kingdom of Binge." The foreground is 
occupied by a considerable sheet of water, 
called the Tyri Fjord ; while in the distance 
is just distinguished the silvery foam of the 
Honefoss, a noble Fall on the river that feeds 
the Lake. The view is closed by numerous 
mountains, capped with snow, which when I 
saw it, looked little able to withstand the 
action of twenty hours' continued sunshine. 

Unfortunately, the outline of the mountain 
ranges is too tame ; and their glaciers want the 
depth and intensity of the everlasting snows of 



IN NORWAY. 137 

Switzerland. These patches appear nothing 
more than the traces of the last winter, not yet 
effaced; whereas the frozen honours of Mont 
Blanc and the Jungfrau are associated in our 
minds with the ages that have elapsed since the 
dawn of creation. However, it is undoubtedly 
a very fine prospect, with which no one would 
feel disappointment, if it were not, from its 
vicinity to the capital, perhaps, a little over- 
rated. The lover of the sublime and beautiful 
need not fear but that he will meet with 
many a nobler scene than this, in the course 
of his Tour. 

Honefoss should certainly be visited : it lies 
but a short distance from the road, and is an 
excellent specimen of the Norwegian Falls, I 
before attempted to characterise. There is 
also said to be good angling, late in the season : 
earlier, the rivers are too full of snow water. 
The traveller can sleep either at Honefoss or 
at Klekkan : at both places he will find good 
accommodation. 



138 TWO SUMMERS 

If his object be to reach Jrondhjem, and his 
time be limited, he must at once proceed 
Northwards : but in case he have sufficient 
leisure, or wish to see Tellemarken, he will 
make a circuit from this point to Kongsberg ; 
whence he will either cross the mountains to 
Gousta Fjeld, or return by Drammen to Chris- 
tiania, according to the Tour he may have 
chalked out for himself. Gn my first visit to 
Norway, I adopted the latter line ; and the 
interest of the objects it presents, added perhaps 
to the charm of its being the first excursion 
I made in the country, rendered it so delight- 
ful, that I feel strongly inclined to advise my 
countrymen to endeavour to comprise it within 
their tour. They might easily accomplish it, 
by reversing my route ; that is, by going from 
Christiania, through Drammen, to Kongsberg ; 
and thence Northwards by the Tyri Fjord, to 
Klekkan, &c. 

After thoroughly examining Krogkleven, I 
dined at Sundvoll, a small inn at the foot of 



IN NORWAY. 139 

the Pass. It was my first introduction to 
Norwegian fare, outside the capital: and it 
gave me a very unpleasant foretaste of what 
I was to expect in the remoter districts. Here 
at a point of great resort, scarcely thirty miles 
from Christiaiiia, and after giving three or four 
hours' notice, I could obtain nothing but a 
plate of insipid grayling, and a cake of fried 
eggs, with some hard, stringy, ill-flavoured 
bacon : the potatoes were scanty and bad ; and 
I had not yet become accustomed to the sour 
rye bread. To wash down this indifferent 
dinner, there was only one bottle of wine in the 
house : it was labelled "Padus," a name I never 
heard of before or since ; and reminded me of 
Tavel wine, of which most visiters to Switzerland 
will probably retain a disagreeable reminiscence. 

I slept that night at the village close to the 
Falls of Honefoss, which I greatly admired as 
well under the brilliant effect of the morning 
sun, as by the milder evening's light. There 
are many grander, many much loftier Palls : 



140 TWO SUMMERS 

but I know none more thoroughly Norwegian. 
It forms, if I may so say, a long inclined plane 
of broken water, with rocks irregularly pro- 
truding in the midst. On these so many 
sawmills are built, as to look like a little village 
floating on the wild torrent. The breadth of 
the river, and the body of the water, are very 
great : and across the very centre of the Fall, 
a long bridge of planks, scarcely raised above 
the rushing flood, offers an apparently very 
insecure passage to carriages as well as pedes- 
trians. In autumn, there is said to be very 
good fishing in this river, and in the Rauna, 
which joins it just below Honefoss : Trout from 
twenty to thirty pounds in weight come up to 
the Falls, from Tyri Fjord, at the approach 
of the spawning season. When I was there 
in early June, the water was too discoloured 
to afford any chance with the fly : and though, 
on my way to Kongsberg, I took a boat the 
whole length of the Lake, for the purpose of 
trying the troll, I had no success whatever. 



IN NORWAY. 141 

The scenery of the Tyri Fjord is pretty and 
pleasing : I should not class it higher than a 
second-rate Scotch Lake. At its southern ter- 
mination I regained my carrioles, at a point 
where the stream on issuing from the Fjord, 
seemed to offer most beautiful harbour for 
large trout, which, I was also assured, do he 
there. Salmon cannot ascend this river, being 
stopped by the Falls at Hougsund. 

I had great difficulty to reach Hougsund. The 
floods, which are usual in the early part of the 
summer, in consequence of the melting snows, 
had carried away most of the bridges, and torn 
up some of the road : so that we were frequently 
obliged to make our way, as best we could, 
across fields, and through intricate places, which 
nothing but the lightness of our vehicles joined 
to great labour and perseverance, enabled us 
to surmount. At some of these spots, I must 
confess, the thought involuntarily came into 
my mind, How is it probable that I shall be 
able to accomplish 1200, or 1500 miles, in the 



142 ■ TWO SUMMERS 

wilder parts of tMs country, vvlieii I liave 
already experienced such, difficulties, and some 
extraordinary escapes, in two days^ travelling, 
within forty or fifty miles of tlie Capital ? 

During this little excursion, I had occasion 
to cross several Ferries ; and I was greatly re- 
lieved to ascertain that what I had invariably 
in all otlier countries found to be the certain 
scenes of imposition, annoyance, and delay, if 
not of risk to man and baggage, were much 
better regulated in Norway. There is a fixed, 
and very moderate tariff at all the Norwegian 
Ferries : the boats are usually kept in good 
order, and are sufficient for the carriages they 
have to convey. The ferrymen are remarkably 
expert in their management ; and are very 
thankful for a trifle over the legal charge. 
After a long experience of them, the only 
instances of the slightest annoyance of which 
I have to complain, were at one or two, where 
the men were somewhat in liquor : of these 
by far the worst, on three occasions that I 



IN NORWAY. 143 

crossed it, was Minde, at - the southern end 
of Lake Mjosen. 

Between Xyri Fjord and Hougsund the road 
passes within a short distance of the Cobalt 
works of Modum : they are under the direction 
of a very intelligent gentleman, named Bohert, 
and will amply reward a visit : the crystals of 
Serpentine are especially remarkable. A little 
above Hougsund, the whole body of the Drammen 
river, (as large as a dozen of Father Thames,) 
falls perpendicularly over a considerable ledge 
of rock, into an immense basin; whence it 
flows more tranquilly down to Drammen, 
carrying with it timbers and deals innumerable. 
The height of the Fall is not proportioned to 
its breadth; but the quantity, force, and im- 
petuosity of the water, render it an impressive 
spectacle. No Salmon can possibly ascend it : 
they, however, may be seen vainly attempt- 
ing to surmount the obstacle that Nature has 
placed to their upward course : and at certain 
convenient spots, baskets are ingeniously set, 



144 TWO SUMMERS 

into which the fish occasionally fall back, after 
making their ineffectual spring. Hougsund 
is not a place for the fly-fisher. 

I was here first made experimentally aware 
of the necessity of despatching a Forbud in 
Norway. Not having quite determined my 
route, I had ordered no horses : and the con- 
sequence was, that I was detained upwards of 
three hours waiting for them. I whiled away 
the time, after examining the Foss, in watching 
the numerous parties that crossed the Ferry. 
The river is extremely broad, and the stream 
very strong : and this being the principal point 
of transit between Tellemarken and Drammen, 
there was no lack of passengers. And curious 
figures some of them were. Many were dressed 
in the true old fashion of the province, which 
retains a more distinguishing costume, than 
any other part of Norway, except some portions 
of Bergens Stift. The men wore ridiculously 
short jackets, almost up to their shoulders, and 
equally diminutive waistcoats, studded with 



IN NORWAY. 145 

buttons. Their breeches also were ornamented 
with large silver buttons half way up the thigh : 
their stockings did not quite reach the knee, 
so as to leave it free and bare. The most 
usual colours were pale green, or brown, re- 
lieved with red. They all wore their hair curl- 
ing long over their shoulders, and under their 
chins : it was very evident that they are bad cus- 
tomers to the barber. I could not, however, 
help regretting that almost all the women were 
dressed as much a la Francaise (with Gigot 
sleeves, &c.) as their materials allowed them. 
Few of the fairer sex displayed any national 
costume, and none that was picturesque, like 
that of their mountain sisters in Switzerland. 

At length the horses arrived : and we were 
safely ferried across the stream, that in its 
swollen state looked sufficiently formidable. 
A mark and a half (little more than an English 
shilling) not only paid for my two carrioles, 
servant and self, but also left so handsome a 
surplus as procured me a profusion of bows and 

VOL.1. H 



146 TWO SUMMERS 

acknowledgements. With all this delay, it 
was nearly nine o' clock when I reached the 
next Station, Dunserud, a small isolated cottage 
tenanted by two old women, one of whom must 
run for the horses. As she assured. me they 
had to be summoned from a farm between five 
and six miles distant ; and Kongsberg, I knew, 
was not more than seven miles off, I at once 
determined on proceeding there alone, and on 
foot, leaving my servant to follow with the 
carriages. 

The evening was most lovely ; and though 
the sun soon set, it remained so light that I 
could at any time read the smallest print 
without difficulty. My nocturnal walk, alone, 
and in so entirely strange a country, had 
something of singularity : I, however, met with 
no adventure, indeed scarcely saw an individual 
on the road. All was still as death : the only 
souncr heard was of distant cataracts. The 
road was hilly and bad; and rewarded me by 
no fine scenery, until I reached the hill imme- 



IN NORWAY. 147 

diately above Kongsberg. The view from that 
point of the sleeping city, at the bottom of a 
savage and spacious valley, with a turbulent 
river roaring through its centre, was very fine, 
particularly under the circumstances I saw it. 

I lingered long to enjoy it, smoking mean- 
while my last cigar; and listening anxiously 
for the distant sound of my chariot wheels to 
break the silence of the night. But in vain : 
so I descended into the town. Its streets were 
completely deserted. I perambulated them 
once or twice without seeing a soul, or observ- 
ing the slightest appearance of an inn : it is 
not the custom in Norway, as in Denmark, to 
give any pictorial representation of the articles 
sold within. By this time, I had become 
alive to the unpleasantness of being alone in 
a strange city, with little or no knowledge 
of the language. At length I discovered a 
watchman fast asleep (as is the privilege of 
watchmen in all lands) with his " morning star" 
by his side : for such is the name given to 
h2 



148 TWO SUMMERS 

the staff, with a round head studded with spikes, 
that as far as my experience extends, is con- 
fined to the watchmen of Scandinavia. 

I knew the name of the hostess with whom 
I was to lodge, Mrs. Semmelsohn ; and I 
made no doubt, therefore, of being able at least 
to make known my wish to be conducted there. 
But either Charley was impenetrably stupid, 
or I was inconceivably unintelligible : I could 
make nothing of him; and I was equally 
unsuccessful with two or three peasants with 
whom I eventually met. Once, indeed, I was 
as I afterwards ascertained, brought to the 
very house ; but there was no outward indica- 
tion of an inn, and all was so still and so like 
a private residence, that I did not like to 
disturb its inmates, knowing how impossible 
it would be for me to explain my mistake, or 
my wants. I, therefore, continued pacing up 
and down the streets, and occupied the chief 
part of the time in admiring the fine Fall in the 
usual style of cataract, formed by the river in 



IN NORWAY. 149 

the middle of the city. About half an hour 
after midnight, day began evidently to break ; 
and a little before two, to my infinite relief, 
my carrioles and servants arrived, thereby 
releasing me from one of the most unpleasantly 
singular situations I ever was in. Mrs. 
Semmelsohn was greatly distressed to hear of 
my embarrassment; and soon gave me a 
refreshing cup of coffee, and an excellent 
apartment, where I forgot all the night's 
adventures. 

The next morning, after a late but capital 
breakfast on capercailzie, &c, I drove over to 
the famous Silver Mines, which had been my 
great inducement to visit Kongsberg. They 
are situated about five English miles from the 
town, up a wild lateral valley, entirely occupied 
with Pine forests. Their situation is strikingly 
secluded : the entrance to them lies high up 
the side of a rocky mountain ; and as far as 
the eye can reach, nothing but fir-clad rocks 
are visible, until glancing up from the lower 



150 TWO SUMMERS 

ranges, it rests upon the everduring glaciers 
of the highest Fjelder. I do not intend to 
trouble my reader with a lengthened descrip- 
tion of these mines, because they have often 
been visited and described, and I have else- 
where given some details of them.* From 
what I have said there, and now, it may be 
gathered that a visit to them cannot but inte- 
rest the lover of the picturesque, as much as 
the geologist. 

While exploring them, I learned that two 
young men, concerned in the management of 
the mines, intended to shoot a bear that very 
night at a spot, about three miles off. An 
old horse had been deposited at a favourable 
ambush in the depth of the Forest, and covered 
with trunks of trees too heavy for any animal 
but a bear to remove. Bruin had been there 
three nights before, and had eaten part of the 
cheek and shoulder. A strict, but silent watch 



* See Volume II. 



IN NORWAY. 151 

had been maintained every subsequent night ; 
and as the bear had not returned, it was inferred 
with much apparent probability that he must 
be so hungry as to be sure of coming this 
night. The opportunity was too tempting to 
be neglected : and I easily obtained their con- 
sent to be a partner in their watch. 

I accordingly drove back to Kongsberg : got 
my gun, and made other necessary prepara- 
tions; and about sun-set we proceeded with 
stealthy steps, through the tangled mazes of 
the Forest to the scene of what I expected to 
be very probably a perilous encounter with a 
bear. On arriving at the spot, all idea of 
danger vanished. I found a small, but strong 
and well built log-hut, on a rock immediately 
above the dell in which lay the carcase of the 
horse at a distance of forty yards, where with a 
fortnight's provisions, and plenty of ammuni- 
tion, a man might defy a combined attack of 
all the bears and wolves in Scandinavia. 

Here we lay in anxious suspense and perfect 



152 TWO SUMMERS 

silence, wrapped in our cloaks or blankets, 
expecting each, moment to hear Bruin coming 
to his nocturnal meal. Not a sound however 
met our ear, except, of the cuckoo and thrush, 
throughout the night, which was exquisitely 
mild and beautiful. Soon after sun-rise we 
quitted our lair, and returned to the mines ; 
knowing it was useless to remain longer. I 
certainly was somewhat disappointed : at the 
same time, the novelty of a bivouac in the depth 
of an interminable Pine Forest, miles away 
from any human habitation, with the extreme 
beauty of the night, and the excitement of an 
anticipated rencontre with so powerful a beast 
as the Norwegian bear, amply sufficed to recon- 
cile me to the trifling trouble I had undergone. 

Kongsberg is the point from which to take 
horses, for those who wish to visit Tellemarken 
and the Gousta Fjeld : the Tour must be per- 
formed updn horseback ; but from all accounts, 
it fully recompenses the traveller's fatigues by 
its sublime beauties. My route took me to 



IN NORWAY. 153 

Drammen, and over the u Paradiesbakken," 
(justly celebrated for its extensive and noble 
prospect) to Christiania : but if the Tourist 
have followed the line I have recommended, 
(reversing my route,) he will proceed by Houg- 
sund and the Tyri Fjord to Klekkan, at which 
point we will, therefore, resume our journey 
northwards. 

From Klekkan the next day's journey brings 
us to the Mjosen, a beautiful sheet of water, 
seventy miles in length. Its scenery is pleas- 
ing rather than grand ; to be enjoyed, rather 
than described : in short, just of the character 
calculated to give a soothing, tranquil charm to 
a drive along its shore. Towards its upper end 
is situated the large, straggling village of Lille- 
hammer, to which the Government have long 
endeavoured to give a fictitious importance, as 
an emporium for the supply of the surrounding 
districts. A few years ago most of the shop- 
keepers became bankrupt : but they are now 
said to be in a more prosperous state, of which 
h 3 



? 



154 TWO SUMMERS 

I saw evidence, the last time I passed, in the 
number of new houses lately built. The Inn 
at Lillehammer is very uncomfortable : I should 
therefore advise the tourist to go on to the next 
Station, Moshuus. Two or three miles before 
reaching it, he will pass close by Hundfoss ; a 
considerable Fall, which prevents the Pike, 
that infest the Mjosen, from ascending any 
higher ; and where also very large trout from 
that Lake congregate in the autumn. ■ 

We have now entered Gruldbrandsdalen, and 
the scenery manifestly improves. Hitherto it 
had resembled our own highlands ; from this 
point it assumes much more of an Alpine cha- 
racter. The depth of the Valley prevents the 
highest ranges from being seen : but the moun- 
tains that immediately enclose it, are both 
massive and bold. They often terminate in a 
perpendicular wall, over which tumble cascades 
innumerable ; at other times they are covered 
with forest from their base to their summit ; 
and more rarely descend with such a slope as 



IN NORWAY. 155 

to admit of Gaards and cultivation, half-way 
up their sides. The road still follows the course 
of the Losne, (the principal feeder of the 
Mjosen,) which alternately rushes tumultu- 
ously through narrow gorges, or swells out 
into placid Lakes. Several lateral vallies, of 
dark and wild aspect, pour their tributary 
waters ; and hundreds of smaller streams force 
their deep path through the wildest ravines 
imaginable. The lover of the picturesque will 
stop to admire one of the finest of these latter, 
between Elstad and Hundorp : and if he has 
hisjrod with him, may try for a couple of hours 
to capture some of the gigantic trout, that are 
reported to swarm in its crystal depths : I wish 
him better success than I had. 

At a very steep ascent, called Kringelen, is 
a rude monument, with a flamingly patriotic 
inscription, to commemorate the slaughter of 
some Scotchmen, (variously estimated from 250 
to 900 men,) in the year 1612. They had 
landed in llomsdalen, and were marching un- 



156 TWO SUMMERS 

der the command of a Colonel Sinclair, towards 
Sweden, when they were encountered here by 
the peasants of the neighbouring district. An 
ambuscade had been prepared, the road barri- 
caded, rocks and trees collected to overwhelm 
the unsuspecting foe. So well had the plan 
been laid, that while only six of the Bonder 
were killed, the whole of the Highlanders 
perished, except about twenty who were taken 
prisoners. Many of the traditions connected 
with this feat of arms are ridiculously extra- 
vagant : they have lately been collected and 
published by the worthy Pastor of the Parish.* 
It is quite extraordinary to witness the im- 
portance attached to this distant event, which 
one might have thought they would rather wish 
to forget, if not to conceal. The disproportion 
of slaughter in a combat between peasants and 
disciplined troops, shows at once under what 
advantages the former must have fought. But 



* For further details of this event, see Volume II. 



IN NORWAY, 157 

their subsequent conduct to the prisoners was 
most atrocious. They started with the inten- 
tion of conveying them to Christiania; but 
getting tired of the journey, the next day, in 
cold blood, shot them all, in order, as a local 
ballad of their own expresses it, "to save 
themselves the trouble of conveying them, and 
the country the expense of maintaining them \" 
A short distance beyond Kringelen, the road 
passes close by a beautiful waterfall : a com- 
modious stone bridge has now been built a 
little lower down ; but the picturesque wooden 
bridge, figured by Barrow, still exists. A little 
further lies the Post Station of Laurgaard, at 
the foot of a wild rocky pass : and, here I pro- 
pose to rest awhile, for the purpose of describ- 
ing a very interesting excursion I made in the 
neighbourhood. During a piscatory expedition 
to a Lake, not far from Laurgaard, I acci- 
dentally became acquainted with a very respec- 
table farmer, named Thor Odegarten ; who gave 
so favourable an account of the numbers of Rein- 



158 TWO SUMMERS 

deer on tlie mountains of Rundene, that I 
agreed to accompany him and his brother to 
the chace. 

We started .early on the morning of the 23rd 
of June; each riding an excellent mountain 
pony, and accompanied by a sumpter horse 
laden with the articles necessary for a two days' 
bivouac on the hills. Crossing the river, our 
path lay along the face of a rock that forms 
the eastern barrier of the gorge above Laur- 
gaard. The ascent was extremely steep ; and 
if our beasts had not been remarkably active 
and sure-footed, we might in a thousand places, 
have been dashed into the flood that roared 
below. We reached the summit safely, in 
about two hours ; when we emerged upon an 
elevated plain, covered with* stunted juniper, 
dwarf birch, and willow, (bcetula nana, and salix 
herbacea,) the last traces of arboreal vegeta- 
tion that crown all the Scandinavian heights, 
above the limits of the fir, and larger birch. 
There were scattered p atches of snow on the 



IN NORWAY. 159 

lower grounds ; and the surrounding hills uni- 
versally retained their wintery mantle. Here 
and there cattle were roaming at large ; while 
in the foreground stood several Ssetters, con- 
sisting of neatly-built log-houses, with a green 
enclosure round each. 

We entered into one of them, which be- 
longed to Thor; and I was greatly pleased 
with the order and cleanliness that reigned 
throughout. A buxom maiden was employed 
in washing her numerous wooden utensils with 
a decoction of juniper branches, the best 
nostrum for keeping them perfectly sweet. 
She immediately arose to present us with a 
bowl of delicious milk. Her little dairy was 
a pattern of neatness ; and already at this 
early season was well stored with butter : the 
furniture appeared simple, but sufficient, and 
beautifully clean. The Ssetter life seems 
exactly to resemble that of the Swiss chalet ; 
only it is not so far removed from the habita- 
tions of their fellow men. The Norwegians 



160 TWO SUMMERS 

have the same affectionate names for their 
cows, the same songs in their praise; and, 
singular enough, precisely the same long horn 
as the well known Cor des Alpes, only that it 
is straight, instead of being curved, at the end. 
The lonely, adventurous life of the Ssetter, 
must have its charm, for a time at least ; 
and their songs express this sentiment very 
strongly. 

Leaving these last abodes of men, we rode 
slowly across the boggy plain ; and soon came 
in view of Rundene. This isolated mountain 
consists of a cluster of half a dozen conical 
peaks, nearly of equal height, and most pic- 
turesquely grouped together in an irregular 
circle, resembling, though on a smaller scale, 
the famed coronal of Monte Rosa. They are 
6500 feet above the sea; and are clad with 
beautifully pure snow from the summit down 
to the elevated plateau from which they rise. 
Three hours after quitting the S setter, we 
reached our halting place in a romantic dell at 



IN NORWAY. 161 

the very foot of tlie highest Peak, where we 
turned our beasts loose to feed at large. I 
had just time to observe that there was a small 
low building of stones loosely put together 
where I understood I must pass the night. It 
had by no means an inviting appearance ; and 
certainly promised no very splendid accom- 
modations ; but my mind was too much 
occupied by anticipations of the novel sport I 
was about to enjoy, to care for such things. 
However, I could not but stop a moment to 
admire the wild charms of its situation. It 
stood upon the brink of a fierce torrent, that 
had cut a deep and narrow channel in the 
solid rock : and immediately over it impended 
the dazzling pinnacles of snow-capped Rundene. 

We then, under Thor's guidance, penetrated 
into the inmost recesses of the mountain range, 
which his experience pointed out to be the most 
likely feeding ground of the Reindeer, at this 
season. Occasionally, we ascended the loftiest 
pinnacles, or traversed vast plains of frozen 



162 TWO SUMMERS 

snow : at other times we dived into the depths of 
the vallies, and toiled up the opposing precipices. 
In many places the softness of the snow ren- 
dered the walking very laborious. The sun 
too was scorchingly hot, and the glare most 
distressing to the eyes. Wherever the snow 
had disappeared, the Lichens, which constitute 
the sole support of the Reindeer during the 
winter, covered the ground with a thick and 
soft carpet; and many beauteous flowers, 
classed by my men under the general name of 
Renblornster, or n Reindeer flowers," but quite 
new to me, had already begun to expand their 
half-frozen petals. We saw many cock Ptar- 
migans perched proudly on rocks within a few 
yards of us : the hens were all at this season 
sitting far lower down the sides of the moun- 
tains. 

I was greatly delighted with the views I ob- 
tained from many of the elevated points we 
ascended. From the central and insulated 
position of Rundene, I was able to command 



IN NORWAY. 163 

a vast extent of the loftiest mountain chains in 
Norway, from the Dovre Fjeld, to the Jotun 
Fjeld. Sneehsettan, in all its height and 
breadth, was distinctly visible; but by no 
means the most striking of the group. To the 
south-west, as far as the eye could reach, ap- 
peared peak after peak, glittering in the sun- 
beams, and connected by, what from this dis- 
tance seemed, continuous fields of snow. This 
coup d'oeil gave me quite a new impression of 
the dignity of the Norwegian Alps ; and when 
I traced the line of the deep valley, through 
which I had journeyed so many days, I could 
scarcely believe I had passed so close to these 
gigantic ranges, without being once favoured 
with a glimpse of their snowy honours. 

In various spots we discovered recent traces 
of deer upon the snow: but though we ex- 
amined every nook and cranny thrdugh an 
excellent telescope, we could not, for many 
hours, espy a single living animal. At length, 
when we were beginning to despair, Thor 



164 TWO SUMMERS 

descried a herd of twenty does and fawns, 
reposing at the upper end of a distant glen. 
Unfortunately, they were so placed as to be 
difficult of approach, They occupied a bare 
ridge, surrounded on all sides by unbroken 
snow, which rendered it totally impossible to 
advance nearer than 200 yards, without being 
perceived. I had not a rifle with me ; and at 
that distance a ball from a plain barrel is 
scarcely to be depended on. 

However, there was no help for it : and, 
therefore, after taking an accurate survey of 
the country, we made a long circuit, and 
arrived, unperceived, in the neighbourhood 
of the unsuspecting herd. On our way we 
had to cross several awkward places, which we 
accomplished in comparative safety, except at 
one spot, where we were compelled to traverse 
a steeply inclined face of ice, slightly covered 
with recent snow. Here my treacherous 
footing gave way, and I was instantly hurried 
at a fearful rate, down the declivity. It was 



IN NORWAY. 165 

well for me that I lost neither my balance, nor 
my presence of mind : for by striking the 
barrels of my gun with as much force as I 
could, into the frozen mass, I was eventually 
stopped on the verge of a swollen torrent, that 
had at that point burst asunder the overlying 
snow. If I had fallen into that roaring flood, 
I should in a moment have been carried under 
the frost bound arch ; and never more have 
had an opportunity of recording my exploits. 
A gracious Providence, however, preserved me 
on this, as on so many other occasions ; and 
after hastily rep ahing the damage done to my 
gun, as well as my nerves would allow me, I 
pushed on after my guides, with a grateful 
though panting heart. 

The deer were still reposing in perfect se- 
curity. By stealthily creeping on our hands 
and knees, we reached a small rock at the 
least 200 yards from the nearest of them; 
whence I took a deliberate aim at a fine doe. 
Alas ! the priming had got so wetted by my 



166 TWO SUMMERS 

late fall, that the first barrel missed fire. The 
whole herd instantly jumped up at the sound 
of the percussion cap : without a moment's 
delay I fired the other barrel, and had the 
mortification to see the ball strike the ground, 
a hand's breadth above the animal's back. My 
attendant Chasseurs then fired at the retreat- 
ing body, without success. For a few seconds 
the startled creatures did not seem to know 
which path to take : but soon the strongest 
and boldest took the lead, and the rest quickly 
following, we saw them wend their way in sin- 
gle file up the steepest acclivity; every now 
and then, turning round to gaze in stupid 
amazement at the intruders on their native 
solitudes ; until one after one at length crossed 
the topmost ridge. Then, wishing them good 
night, we sought our own quarters, for the 
rest and refreshment we so much needed. 

In the morning, my anxiety for the chace had 
prevented me from scanning very accurately 
the novel accommodations allotted me : I had 



IN NORWAY. 167 

now ample opportunity of. appreciating their 
deficiencies. Being an old Chamois-hunter, 
I have passed many a night in the rudest Swiss 
chalets, with nothing better than a dirty sheep- 
skin thrown on a bench or table for my bed. 
But never before had I met with any thing so 
bad, as that hut Tinder Bundene. It had been 
constructed, for the purposes of the chace, 
after the fashion of a second rate pig-stye : its 
dimensions were seven feet by six ; its height 
five feet : it had a small, low door, through 
which it was just possible to creep; and half the 
internal space was occupied by a rude, raised 
bench of stone, destined for my couch. The 
whole was built of a peculiar kind of Quartz 
rock, of the purest white, that splits into thin 
and regular laminse, like slates. Our first 
care was to collect a large store of juniper and 
dwarf willow roots, which we soon coaxed into 
a crackling fire heaped up in one corner of the 
hut : which enabled me to boil in my kettle 
a jorum of tea, that we all pronounced to be 



168 TWO SUMMERS 

excellent. I then wrapped myself up in my 
cloaks; nor was it long before the fatigues 
of the day overcame all sensation of the 
strangeness of my position, the drowsy chat- 
tering of my companions, and even the roar 
of the adjoining torrent. 

Starting early the next morning to the spot 
where we had seen the Eeindeer the preceding 
evening, we followed their track for many 
weary miles ; until at length it became evident 
that they had entirely quitted these mountains, 
for a more distant range. We were not fortu- 
nate enough to fall in with any others, though 
we fagged hard over a wide extent of very 
likely ground : our only reward was a success- 
ion of the most splendid panoramic views 
imaginable of all the surrounding chains. 
Although unsuccessful in bringing home a deer, 
I had attained my object of comparing the 
chace of the Rein, with that of the chamois ; 
and had satisfied myself that it is pursued on 
the same plan, but is infinitely tamer from the 



IN NORWAY. 169 

far less acute faculties of the former animal, as 
well as the vast inferiority of the scenery in 
which it is found. In addition to this, I con- 
sidered myself much more than recompensed 
for the fatigue and delay, by the insight I had 
obtained of the S setter district and life; but 
above all, by the opportunity afforded me from 
the top of Rundene, of appreciating the cha- 
racter and structure of the Norwegian Alps. 

We will now resume our journey northwards. 
Immediately above Laurgaard commences one 
of the finest mountain gorges to be seen on this 
road. The ascent is long ; but the grandeur 
of the scenery is such, that the tourist will not 
regret it. It was at the top of this wild Pass^ 
called Rustan, that the Bonder originally in- 
tended to attack Sinclair, instead of at Krin- 
gelen. The Geologist will not fail to remark 
the singular conglomerate of which the rock is 
composed : and one need not be a botanist to 
admire the pretty lichen (L. centrifiigus) that 
adorns the face of every stone with its grey and 

i 



170 TWO SUMMERS 

purple circlets. Beyond the Post station, Hou- 
gen, the narrow defile expands into a tranquil 
vale, occasionally sandy, but showing more traces 
of cultivation than usual. At Tofte, which lies 
a mile out of the road, will be found the hand- 
somest Gaard, and the nicest people, on the 
whole line between Christiania and Trondhjem. 
The landlord is a wealthy proprietor, and re- 
markably intelligent : unfortunately he speaks 
nothing but Norsk. 

At the next Station, Lien, we finally bid 
adieu to the beautiful Gulbrandsdal ; and 
turning to the right begin to mount the 
lower range of the Dovre Fjeld. The road 
rises nearly the whole way to Fogstuen : but 
the acclivity is so gradual, and the immediate 
scenery so tame, that most travellers experi- 
ence grievous disappointment at this first in- 
troduction to one of the highest mountain 
passes in Norway. It is hardly possible to 
imagine a more dreary situation than Fogstuen. 
Placed just at the verge where the fir will grow; 



IN NORWAY. 171 

surrounded by morasses; and exposed to the 
fearful winds that howl over this unprotected 
glen ; without a neighbour, or an acre of corn 
within miles, it has even at Midsummer a 
most desolate look. The sportsman may be 
interested to learn that there is good shooting 
in the vicinity, and fair trout-fishing at no great 
distance. 

I should recommend the Angler to make 
his arrangements so as to reach the bridge, 
half way between Fogstuen and Jerkin, in 
good time. He will find there a pretty little 
stream, which passes through a succession of 
small Lakes ; and contains considerable num- 
bers of trout and grayling. If the weather be 
propitious, and the water in good order, he 
may be certain of good sport, with Scotch Lake 
flies. I have always been there too early, but 
have killed both trout and grayling up to 
three pounds : with the nets they are frequently 
taken, in the autumn, upwards of ten pounds. 
These Lakes are also a favourite breeding place 
i2 



172 TWO SUMMERS 

for many rare kinds of ducks, and other 
aquatic birds : on the lower hills may be found 
a fair sprinkling of Ptarmigan ; while the range 
of Sneehsettan is a celebrated haunt of the 
Reindeer, To add to these recommendations 
in the eyes of a sportsman, there is a most 
comfortable mountain inn at Jerkin ; which, 
retired and lonely as is its situation, he will 
perhaps look back to, as the pleasantest quarters 
he met with on his Tour. During my first 
stay at Jerkin I made an attempt to shoot a 
Reindeer on Sneehsettan, but as it was unsuc- 
cessful, and its details would too closely resem- 
ble my expedition to Rundene, I will not trouble 
the reader with them. 

Should the Tourist join to his other qualifica- 
tions for a visit to Norway, a taste for Botany, 
he must not forget that the mountains between 
J erkin, and Kongsvold, are celebrated for the 
many rare plants they contain : a full catalogue 
of which is given by Professor Blytt, in the 
New Magazine of Sciences. There are many 



IN NORWAY. 173 

which belong to the Flora of Finmark : some 
whose only other European habitat is supposed 
to be the Pyrenees; remote districts to be 
connected together by Flora's wand. I believe, 
however, that this distinguished Botanist's 
subsequent researches in Valders have shown 
that these vegetable rarities are not quite so 
restricted, as had previously been thought to 
be the case. 

The stages from Jerkin to Kongsvold, and 
thence to Drivstuen, comprise the grandest 
scenery that the traveller will meet with on 
his road to Trondhjem. In the first stage, a 
couple of miles beyond Jerkin, the highest 
point of ascent is crossed, 4 ; 500 feet above 
the sea; whence is a sharp descent into 
Kongsvold. The road then, instead of following 
the deep and rocky bed of the Driva, which 
would have cost much labour and cutting, 
mounts the precipitous side of the eastern 
mountains, by a winding ascent called the 
Vaar-stieg, or " spring path/' because at that 



174 TWO SUMMERS 

season it first begins to be used ; in winter 
the frozen bed of the river forms the line of , 
communication. To one who has not passed 
the Fille Fjeld, the Vaar-stieg will doubtless 
appear formidable enough. The acclivities are 
extremely steep, the path very narrow; and 
often there is no protection whatever between 
you and the Driva that is heard, but not seen, 
rushing through a chasm more than a thousand 
feet beneath. The opposite side of the con- 
tracted valley is bounded by a nearly perpen- 
dicular wall, of still superior height, which 
terminates the massy platform, whereon the 
range of Sneehsettan is reared. The views 
along the upper part of the vale of the Driva, 
are characterised by wilder grandeur than any 
that I have seen in Scandinavia, except in 
Romsdalen, and on the Fille Fjeld. 

Drivstuen, though comparatively low, is one 
of the four mountain Inns, to which peculiar 
privileges, a tract of free land, exemption from 
taxes, &c, have been granted, on condition of 



IN NORWAY. 175 

their keeping a house open the whole year for 
the entertainment of travellers. The others are 
Fogstuen, Jerkin, and Kongsvold. I cannot 
speak in favour of its accommodations : and I 
should not advise any Angler to waste time in 
trying this part of the Driva : the trout there 
are small and by no means numerous. 

The lower part of the valley becomes beautiful, 
as the upper part had been grand. It rapidly 
assumes milder features : luxuriant corn fields 
appear, the first that have greeted the eye, 
since leaving Gulbrandsdal. The slopes are 
covered with alders and the pretty bird-cherry, 
among which thousands of fieldfares are flitting 
about, evidently conveying food to their neigh- 
bouring nests. It is interesting thus to see em- 
ployed in its domestic duties, a bird which with 
us is so wild, and but a temporary visitant. 
At Ofne is a very comfortable, and cleanly Inn: 
the last on the road to which such epithets can 
be applied. Hence to Trondhjem is about 
eighty miles ; and there is not a single house 



176 TWO SUMMERS 

on the road that I can recommend : perhaps, 
Soknses is the best. 

Close to Ofne the Driva makes an abrupt 
bend to the Westward; wherefore leaving it, 
our course points to the North-east, over a very 
wild and elevated tract, that commands exten- 
sive views of peculiarly Norwegian scenery; 
from the perpetual snows of the higher ranges 
down to the Gaards in the green vales at our 
feet. The Pine forests seem interminable : and 
if, as will probably be the case, the traveller 
pass this way towards the end of June, their 
effect will be increased by the numerous parties 
he will meet on their return from the great 
Fair at Tfondhjem. I do not mean to say that 
they are in all respects the most agreeable 
people to encounter, as they travel in large and 
not very orderly cavalcades, which frequently oc- 
cupy both sides of the narrow road, rendering it 
difficult, if not dangerous, to steer through them, 
down many of the precipitous descents. 

They mostly come down from the mountain 



IN NORWAY. 177 

glens of the interior, for the purpose of ex- 
changing the produce of their dairies, or their 
young horses, for such colonial articles as they 
may want, salt fish, corn, and leather. With 
such like goods they load their little cars to 
the utmost extent that their ponies can drag : 
but invariably on the top of all is a capacious, 
and smartly-painted chest, which contains 
their provisions for the journey. They seem 
rarely, if ever, to enter a house, by night, or 
by day. Whenever themselves, or their cattle 
require rest and food, they select a convenient 
spot, where they draw up their cars in a long 
line ; and after turning out their horses shackled 
into the adjoining forest, form a family group 
round the provision box, to whose contents they 
do ample justice ; and then soon sink into 
slumbers that a monarch might envy. 

The flowing locks, on which the old Norwe- 
gian prides himself, the strange attire of both 
sexes, the uncouth appearance of these children 
of the mountain, combined with the picturesque- 
i 3 



178 TWO SUMMERS 

ness of the glades in which they are seen, fre- 
quently give these bivouacs of the forest an 
indescribably striking and novel effect. 

At Birkager the road crosses the very deep 
and romantic Valley of the River Orke, a 
short distance below the point where it escapes 
from a wild rocky gorge, within which it had 
long been confined. A few Salmon ascend 
this river in the autumn ; but not in sufficient 
numbers to tempt the most inveterate Angler 
to encounter the wretched accommodations of 
the Inn. Beyond Birkager, the road follows 
the line of a small mountain stream, till it 
eventually falls into the beautiful Valley of 
the Guul, near Soknaes. From Soknses for 
many miles up its course, the Guul presents 
a succession of exquisite landscapes. It does 
not aspire to sublimity : but for pleasing, and 
picturesque character, I know not its equal 
throughout Norway. 

The Vale is generally narrow, and hemmed 
in by lofty broken rocks, of very varied form 
and colour, which often standing boldly athwart 



IN NORWAY. 179 

the stream, compel it to wind round their base. 
Where these recede, the intervening space is 
thickly studded with Gaards and corn fields : 
and wherever their irregular sides afford a little 
level ground, neat cottages with enclosures 
around them, are seen far above the fertile 
plain, perched like eagles' eyries on the brink 
of apparently inaccessible precipices. How 
their inhabitants reach them, seems inexpli- 
cable : for the toilsome path is completely 
hidden among the rocks and dark forests. 
Nor are the usual accompaniments of a Nor- 
wegian scene, waterfalls, wanting to complete 
the beauties of this Valley, which no lover of 
Nature should neglect to visit. 

As to the piscatory capabilities of the Guul, 
I shall have occasion to speak of them in my 
general description of the Scandinavian Rivers. 
Suffice it here to say, that although I consider 
it one of the very best Salmon rivers in Nor- 
way, I would not recommend the Angler to 
make any delay at it ; as the Namsen which is 
so much superior a stream, will be in right 



180 TWO SUMMERS 

order, and full of fish, at least as early as the 
Guul. It will therefore be better to try it, on 
his return from the North. 

About two miles before reaching Trondhjem, 
the road arrives at the brow of a considerable 
hill, which commands a remarkably fine view of 
the town, and its magnificent Fjord. From this 
point, it has the appearance of a vast Lake, girt 
by an amphitheatre of mountains, all of noble 
contours and dimensions, but no single one 
riveting the eye by any marked pre-eminence. 
It is impossible to avoid instituting a mental 
comparison between it, and its Southern rival. 
My first impression (which subsequent obser- 
vation confirmed) was, that Trondhjem's Fjord 
is characterised by more grandeur, but by less 
variety, and less loveliness, than that of Chris- 
tiania. Its general features are upon a greater 
scale, but it wants the picturesque peninsulas ; 
it wants the profusion of wood ; and above all, 
it wants the islands, that lend such a charm 
to the shores and basin of the latter. 

There is one single rocky islet, called Munk- 



IN NORWAY. 181 

holm, a mile or two off, in the roadstead, oppo- 
site the town. It was anciently occupied by 
a monastery; but has lately been fortified, 
with the ostensible object of protecting the 
port against all invaders. In case of a serious 
attack, this puny fortress could evidently have 
little influence in deciding the fate of the city : 
and a couple of frigates would blow it into 
the water, in a quarter of an hour. Trondhjem 
itself also exhibits some signs of being for- 
tified : for what purpose I could not exactly 
make out ; certainly not, of offence, or defence, 
against any such assailants as it is likely to 
encounter : it is commanded on all sides. 

There is no Inn whatever in this Northern 
capital of Norway. An indifferent one was 
lately set up, but the experiment did not an- 
swer ; and it was soon closed. There are, how- 
ever, several lodging-houses ; the best of which, 
especially for an^Englishman, is that of Mrs. 
Homberg, a wonderful old lady, who has kept 
lodgings for more than half a century; and 
though upwards of eighty, still retains a green 



182 TWO SUMMERS 

old age. The stranger will meet with every 
attention and reasonable comfort at her house. 
She had the honour of accommodating the 
present Ruler of France, Louis Philippe, dur- 
ing his expatriation in the early times of the 
French Revolution : and she has this summer 
(1839) received from him a very handsome 
Musical clock, through the hands of the French 
Scientific Expedition lately sent to the North. 
It may be imagined how much the good old 
lady was gratified by this royal recollection of 
the treatment he had experienced at her house : 
and all the time I was there, its tunes were 
kept almost incessantly playing for the amuse- 
ment of her numerous friends, that called to 
see, and admire it. Such useless elegances 
as musical clocks are very rare articles at 
Trondhjem; where the ornamental is obliged 
to give place to the strictly useful. 



IN NORWAY. 



183 



CHAPTER V. 

Trondhjem : History ; Appearance ; Trade ; Cathedral — Leer- 
foss — Salmon fishing — Society — Mode of living in Norway 
—Importance of the fair sex — Preparations for the Namsen 
—Routes to it— Fjord of Trondhjem — Trout fishing at 
Hammer — Vserdal — Olaf the Saint — Angling at Steenkjaer 
— Wildness of the country beyond — Hurricane — Bangsund 
—First view of the Namsen — Take up my quarters on it at 
Mediaa. 

However anxious the Tourist may be to 
proceed Northwards from Trondhjem, whether 
his object be to visit the Namsen, or to see 
the encampments of Lapps on the Swedish 
frontiers ; he must perforce devote a few days 
to the repair his equipage will need, after so 
long an exposure to Norwegian usage, as well 
as to the preparations absolutely necessary for 
his further expedition. He will not therefore 



184 TWO SUMMERS 

be sorry to learn, that this short delay may be 
agreeably occupied by various objects of in- 
terest in and about Trondhjem. 

This city is the acknowledged capital of the 
North, as Bergen is of the West, and Chris - 
tiania of the South. Though considerably in- 
ferior in population, it can boast a much more 
ancient importance than either of the others : and 
still retains many vestiges of the consequence 
that belonged to it previously to the complete 
amalgamation of the numerous divisions of Nor- 
way into one kingdom, and the establishment 
of the Supreme Government at Christiania. 
The Cathedral of Trondhjem is the exclusive 
crowning place ; a proud privilege secured to it 
by the National Constitution. Here, also, is the 
National Bank, in spite of sundry attempts 
that have been made to remove it to the 
Southern Metropolis. A civil and military 
governor, with the usual array of subordinate 
officers ; the clergy attached to the Cathedral ; 
and some distinguished scholars connected 



IN NORWAY. 185 

with a very good Latin school ; give, as might 
be expected, a superior tone to the society. 

A large proportion of the principal merchants 
are originally of Danish extraction. Their 
commercial transactions cannot, of course, be 
upon a very extensive scale ; but they are 
a highly respectable, well informed body of 
men, distinguished for their affability and 
kindness to strangers. By far the principal 
• export is salt fish, caught and cured at 
the Islands of Loffoden, during the winter 
months: timber is the next in importance. 
Among the minor articles of export I will only 
mention the grinding stones, which may be 
seen lying on the quays, of micaslate, thickly 
studded with garnets : they come from the 
shores of Lake Sselboe, about twenty miles to 
the South of Trondhjem. The town, is on the 
whole, neatly built ; and has a pretty appear- 
ance from the majority of the houses being 
painted in pleasing colours : and this effect 
is increased by the great width of the streets, 



186 TWO SUMMERS 

imperatively required by the inflammable 
materials of which all Northern cities are 
constructed. The pavement is to the full as 
bad as that of Christiania : need I say more ? 

The great boast of Trondhjem is its ancient 
Cathedral. In a country, where every thing 
is constructed of so perishable an article as 
wood, a building, like this, that has survived 
a few centuries, becomes an object of curiosity. 
But it is, besides, invested with additional in- * 
terest in the eyes of an Englishman, who ex- 
pects to find in it a native model of the taste 
and skill of those Northern men, who reared so 
many magnificent temples in France and in 
England. If, however, he anticipates a rival 
to the glories of Rouen, or of York, he will be 
most grievously disappointed. It cannot be 
concealed that this earliest specimen of Norman 
architecture presents a heavy, and most incon- 
gruous exterior : the only picturesque portion 
is the eastern, which is in the Moorish style ! 
The western end has not been completed. Al- 



IN NORWAY. 187 

together, it possesses a certain degree of solid 
majesty, and confessedly forms a striking fea- 
ture in many of tlie landscapes : more praise I 
cannot, as an admirer of the Beautiful, award 
to it. The antiquarian will doubtless discover 
much more to interest him in the details, es- 
pecially at the fine northern entrance, which 
is in what we usually call the Saxon style, with 
circular arches, and zigzag ornaments. 

The interior is not better than the exterior. 
The arches are walled up ; and the sides dis- 
figured by tiers of pews, exactly resembling 
boxes at a theatre. The only part that I can 
conscientiously praise, is the gothic Shrine 
that encloses the High Altar : the main arch is 
a remarkably light and elegant specimen of the 
gothic curve. Within this shrine stands an 
excellent cast of Thorwaldsen's u Christ/' which - 
the great Danish Sculptor, presented to the 
Cathedral, through his friend Mr. Jorgen 
Knudtzon. Its position is happy, and its 
effect very impressive. 



188 TWO SUMMERS 

It is but too evident that numerous repairs 
are required, to which neither the funds nor 
skill of modern Norway, I fear, are equal. 
The urgency of devoting a considerable annual 
sum to this purpose from the public revenue, 
has been ably advocated by ane of Norway's 
best modern poets, Schwach, in his recent de- 
scription of the Cathedral : but whatever Mr. 
Laing may say, the Bonder M. P/s are ex- 
tremely close-fisted about voting public grants 
for public purposes, even of utility, much less 
of ornament. 

One of the best views of the environs of 
Trondhjem, is from the Fortress, on the heights 
to the North-east of the city. It is there seen 
that the town is built on a sort of peninsula 
formed by a remarkable bend of the River Nid, 
near its embouchure : from which it received its 
ancient name, Nidaros. On the other side, it 
is washed by the clear waters of the Fjord : the 
tide here rises about eight feet. The soil is 
composed of transported gravel and silt, disposed 



IN NORWAY. 189 

in those successive terraces, which so undenia- 
bly prove the former existence of a higher level 
of the water at the mouths of all the Northern 
Vallies. I shall have occasion in the sequel to 
show reasons for concluding that these terraces 
are connected with the elevation of this part of 
the Continent, at no very distant geological 
sera, though not within the period of His- 
tory. 

About three or four miles above Trondhjem, 
the Nid tumbles over the last of a ledge of 
rocks, at a place called Leerfoss, forming one 
of the most beautiful Falls I have seen in 
Norway. The height is not extraordinarily 
great; I should guess about 100 feet: but 
every thing is in admirable proportion. The 
River, which contains as much water as the 
Tweed above Kelso, is hemmed in between 
two narrow walls of rock, whence it is precipi- 
tated in one unbroken mass of silverv foam, 
into the wide basin it has gradually scooped 
out \ and then for a short space rushes tumul- 



190 TWO SUMMERS 

tuously over a sunken reef, to finish its more 
tranquil course to the Fjord. The heights, 
which are disposed in an irregular semicircle 
around, combine harmoniously with the fea- 
tures of the scene : the dark pine appropriately 
fringes each side of the Fall, while the softer 
verdure of the birch and other forest trees 
adorns the lower banks. 

I must also confess that, to my taste, the 
effect here, as elsewhere, is increased rather 
than injured, by some picturesque mills, for 
the preparation of Chrome, and Copper rolling, 
that have been erected on the verge of the 
chasm. An English mile higher up, is a second 
Fall, preferred by many to this; it is rather 
higher, but not so perpendicular, and well 
deserves a visit : attached to it is an interesting 
saw mill on a considerable scale. 

Salmon, ascend as far as the Lower Fall, 
where formerly there was good Angling. It 
is, however, now quite spoiled. After long 
litigation, the peasants have established their 



IN NORWAY, 191 

riglit to fish in the manner they had imitated 
from the Proprietor, who is a capital Angler. 
The consequence of this is that they are con- 
tinually pestering the fish, with worm, or the 
rude bunches of feathers they call flies : and 
as the t space is very limited, they effectually 
prevent better performers from having any 
sport. Now and then, a good fish is killed : but 
from all accounts, they have sadly deteriorated 
both in numbers and size, within the last dozen 
years. 1 have several times accompanied friends 
to Leerfoss, not so much to see them fish, as to 
enjoy the exquisite beauties of the spot : but 
I never, except once, took a rod in hand, when 
my companion killed an ill-shaped Grilse of 
four pounds, the only rise we either of us had. 
There is only one, good sized pool, over which 
the Angler is rowed again and again, leaving 
his flies to play in the stream, fifteen or twenty 
yards below the boat. I would not give a 
bawbee to fish such a river a second time. 
Even an Angling Tourist is much more likely 



192 TWO SUMMERS 

to be detained by the kind hospitality he jvill 
experience at Trondhjem. To one family, in 
particular, well known to every Englishman 
who visits these remote parts, I was indebted 
for the most agreeable hours I spent here. 
The motto over the door of their country seat, 
" Velkommen," (i. e. Welcome !) is admirably 
characteristic of the warm and friendly spirit 
that reigns within. With good taste, they 
retain the most distinctive peculiarities of the 
Norwegian mode of life : but at the same time, 
they are too well acquainted with the best 
habits of other nations not to have engrafted 
them upon those of their own country, wherever 
suitable. The books, the prints, the objects 
of art, that lie scattered about the rooms, 
betray, at the first glance, the familiarity of 
their possessors with England, and Italy : the 
English language is spoken with perfect 
fluency by almost every member of the family. 

In the social intercourse of the higher 
classes in Norway, there is a simplicity of 



IN NORWAY. 193 

customs, united with great ease and comfort, 
which gives it great charms in the eyes of a 
stranger. 

Breakfast is not so great a meal as with us : 
or rather it is divided into two ; consisting 
usually of a simple cup of coffee with a biscuit 
taken early in the morning ; some time after 
which slices of cold meat, smoked salmon, 
cheese, &c. are placed on a side-board, with 
bread and batter, and, of course, the brandy 
bottle. 

The dinner hour is generally one or two 
o'clock : even at the Stadholder's State parties, 
we did not dine later than three. This meal 
always occupies a long time ; as each dish is 
handed round repeatedly to each guest, and 
frequently pressed upon him in what used for- 
merly to be considered the true spirit of hospi- 
tality, in our own country. The fare is good 
and substantial, much more in the German, 
than in the French style : the sweet things are 
almost always excellently made. In all the 

VOL. I. K 



194 TWO SUMMERS 

best houses, there is abundance of Claret, of 
fair quality ; often also a pleasant white wine 
they call Madeira, more probably of Spanish 
growth ; and occasionally Port, though of very 
different flavour from that we are accustomed 
to drink. It is much lighter, both in body 
and colour, being invariably tawny; but it is 
very agreeable to the taste, and very possibly 
more genuine than the strong Port manufac- 
tured for the English market. 

When strangers are present, there are seldom 
wanting toasts complimentary to him or his 
nation, as an excuse for a fair supply of wine 
during the dinner, after which they never sit, 
as we do in England. When this lengthened 
operation is at last over, and all have eaten, 
and drunk, and talked, and sung, to their full 
content, there is usually a slight pause of ex- 
pectation, when the guest of most consequence 
proposes the health of the Host and Hostess, 
with thanks to them for their entertainment : 
upon which the chairs are instantly removed 



IN NORWAY. 195 

with great noise, and the whole party shake 
hands with each other, and with the host, 
saying to him, "Tak for Mad," or "Thanks 
for our repast to which he replies, "Velbe- 
kommen," " May it agree with you P Each 
gentleman then conducts a lady into the adjoin- 
ing room, where coffee is handed round ; and 
most of the male sex soon drop off, to smoke a 
pipe, or take a stroll out of doors. An hour 
or two later, they return for a cup of tea : and 
finally, about nine o' clock, a supper of cold 
meat, fruit, &c. is laid out in the dining room. 

Owing to the early hours of the country, 
the children uniformly make a pleasing addi- 
tion to a Norwegian dinner. But what most 
surprises, and for a long time even distresses, 
an Englishman, is the very active share which 
the ladies take in ministering to his convivial 
comforts. Not only do they personally super- 
intend, and assist in the various processes of 
the cookery, but when the dishes are served, 
they invariably carve them, and, in country 

k 2 



196 TWO SUMMERS 

houses at least, often hand them round, and 
supply the gentlemen with clean plates; the 
host meanwhile sitting quite at his ease, and 
attending only to the intellectual entertain- 
ment of his company. These offices the 
Norwegian ladies perform with admirable mo- 
desty, self-possession, and good humour; and 
are only distressed when a stranger rises to 
prevent their fulfilling what they have always 
been taught to consider a duty, if not a privi- 
lege of their sex. 

Important as women are everywhere, not 
merely for the ornament, but for the daily and 
hourly comforts of social life, they nowhere 
play so indispensable a part as in Norway : a 
Norwegian menage could not possibly go on 
without them. Most frequently there is an 
unmarried sister, or near relative, of the 
husband or wife, who manages every thing, 
and sits at the lady's right hand, ready to 
supply any thing that may be wanted, to keep 
the children in order, &c, which surely is an 



IN NORWAY. 197 

admirable preparation for undertaking the 
matrimonial duties on her own account here- 
after. Every stranger, in venturing an opinion 
of national character, must of course speak 
according to the opportunities he has enjoyed : 
but he must be very unthankful, or had little 
occasion to appreciate them, who does not feel 
that he owes a deep debt of gratitude to the 
fair Norwegians, for much of the pleasure, and 
most of the comfort, of his Tour. 

Good temper, good nature, and good sense, 
they possess in a very superior degree : they 
are certainly not deficient in natural ability : 
and, such information as they have acquired, 
they know how to use to the best advantage, 
with a tact and talent so peculiarly feminine. 
It could not be expected that they should 
generally possess what we call accomplishments : 
the circumstances of their position render 
them both unnecessary, and unattainable. 
Governesses, or masters, or schools for ladies, 
are unknown, except in one or two large 



198 TWO SUMMERS 

towns. In the interior, females are seldom 
acquainted with, any but their mother tongue, 
of which the native literature is very scanty. 
Of foreign authors, they seem to be most 
commonly familiar (through the medium of 
Danish translations) with Scott, par excellence, 
Marryat and Bulwer. 

I have never been fortunate enough to meet 
with a good vocal, or instrumental performer : 
and am convinced that such must at the least 
be rare. In all social companies, however, 
the national melodies are chanted with a 
warmth and energy that make up for science : 
and some, consisting partly of song, and partly 
of a descriptive recitative, in the style of poor 
Charles Matthews' songs, are often given with 
much humour. 

But enough, the reader will say, of Trond- 
hjem ; we have lingered there too long : let us 
proceed Northwards. If, however, he is about, 
as I hope, to accompany me for a month, or 
six weeks, to the Namsen, he must permit me 



IN NORWAY. 199 

to inquire whether lie has made the necessary 
preparations for this formidable expedition : 
for until he has so done, I can by no means 
take upon me the responsibility of advising 
him to start, whatever be his impatience. 
First, his carriages, and harness, and tackle, 
must all be in perfect order ; with extra sup- 
plies of the most necessary articles belonging 
to each, or the most likely to be injured. 
Next, he must be furnished, according to his 
individual requirements, with almost every- 
thing he will want in the articles of food, or 
drink, during five or six weeks. My own 
tastes would induce me to recommend half a 
dozen Madeira, half a dozen Cognac, a large 
stock of English and rye biscuits, a ham or 
two, some maccaroni and rice, coffee, tea, and 
a loaf of sugar. In addition to these almost 
indispensable articles, I have invariably taken 
with me, blankets, a kettle, and frying pan; 
which have proved of infinite service. I can 
only say, that although the visits of English- 



200 TWO SUMMERS 

men within the last few years have visibly 
increased the stock of comforts in the extreme 
North, still a precarious supply of coffee and 
sugar, together with barley cakes, butter, and 
potatoes, are the only articles on which the 
sportsman can reckon, in addition to the pro- 
duce of his gun and rod. 

Freighted then with the above, and such 
other articles as his tastes may require, the 
Angler will leave Trondhjem with a heart 
beating with the anticipation of deeds yet 
undone ; and, I think, need not fear that he 
will be disappointed. He will also find much 
to engage his attention, and excite his admira- 
tion on his way. The road follows the Eastern 
shore of the beautiful Fjord to which Trond- 
hjem has given its name, up to its Northern 
termination, a distance of seventy or eighty 
miles ; and it is rarely carried so far from its 
borders, as riot to command exquisite prospects 
over its lovely waters, and picturesque cliffs. 

The first stage offers pleasing, but not re- 



IN NORWAY. 201 

markable features. The second passes through 
much finer scenery, which conveys a most 
favourable impression of the more retired 
beauties of the Fjord. There is one bay 
especially, deeply indenting the line of the 
coast, which cannot fail to attract the tra- 
veller's admiration, as he drives slowly round 
it. Several fishermen's huts, and smaller 
Gaards, are built upon its edge : at its very 
head stands a handsome gentleman's residence, 
backed by a circling tier of rocks, bristling 
with pines to their very summits ; in the midst 
of which a deep and dark ravine affords a 
tortuous passage to a pretty little trout stream. 

Soon after, the road winds along the side 
of a formidable precipice, immediately im- 
pending over the Fjord, at a height of more 
than 1000 feet. The rocks are of an interme- 
diate character between Gneiss and Mica slate, 
so common in Norway, and are contorted in a 
manner that betrays violent disturbing forces. 
In many spots, broken masses of Gneiss are 
k3 



202 TWO SUMMERS 

imbedded in the strata, as if the original rock 
had been disrupted, and then reconsolidated 
together : the best specimens of this conglome- 
rate are seen close to the Post-sation of Heel. 

Heel is situated on one bank of a considerable 
river that waters the broad Vale of Stordal : 
Sandfserdhuus is the Station on the other 
side. The ferry between them is one of the 
worst to be found in Norway, as from the loose 
nature of the banks, the floods constantly 
sweep away any attempt at forming a secure 
landing place. Salmon come up this river in 
tolerable quantities : but it is evidently not 
suited to the Angler, for at least the last six 
or eight miles of its course : it has never been 
tried higher up. 

We next cross the most extensive tract of 
level ground I have met with in this country ; 
the soil consists of rolled gravel, covered with 
heath, and' exhibiting every indication of having 
once been submerged under water. This plain 
affords one of the few favourable spots for the 



IN NORWAY. 203 

exercise of troops, that Norway can boast : and 
it is accordingly often devoted to that purpose. 
On one of these occasions, the present King 
Carl Johann, and Prince Oscar, were present : 
and the wooden cabins they occupied, are still 
to be seen on the spot, dignified with their 
names. On quitting this plain, the line of 
road rises very considerably. Between Forbord 
and Vserdal is some very romantic scenery, 
which, although it scarcely admits of detailed 
description, cannot fail to afford the picturesque 
Tourist great and varied enjoyment, as he 
winds leisurely through it. 

At Hammer, the Angler will do well to 
stop a day or two : close to the Inn are some 
extensive Lakes, which ^vdll afford him very 
pretty trout fishing in June and July, and 
good duck shooting, in August or September. 
I have never given these Lakes a fair trial : 
however, during the few hours I have fished 
them, whenever there was any breeze to curl 
the water, I hooked trout nearly at each cast 



204 TWO SUMMERS 

of my fly. Those that I caught varied from 
half pound to one pound : but I have seen 
fish of six or seven pounds jump out of the 
water, and hooked one of at least two or three 
pounds. The accommodations at Hammer are 
pretty fair : the people of the house excellent ; 
and they have a good boat on the Lake. In the 
mountains immediately above the house there 
is said to be a Tarn, full of very large trout, 
that take the fly greedily. 

Two stages more bring us to Levanger, 
where fairs are held, at the beginning and end 
of winter, which are numerously attended by 
the Swedes, Finns, and even Russians. It is 
a very dull looking place at any other time. 
In about ten miles further, we come to the 
Valley of Vserdal, where the new made road 
into Sweden branches off suddenly to the 
Eastward. Any traveller who is anxious to 
inspect a summer encampment of the Lapps, 
with their Reindeer, &c. had better take this 
line ; as some of that most singular Nomadi- 



IN NORWAY. 205 

tribe may usually be found within a short 
distance of the road. Skalstugan is the best 
point ; from which to seek them. 

I devoted three or four days to an examina- 
tion of the upper part of the Valley of Vserdal, 
of which Mr. Laing (who resided here between 
one and two years) has given so flattering a 
description. It is, as he says, a fine mountain 
strath : and the scenery of the upper portion 
is characterised even by grandeur. I lodged 
with a delightful family at a Farm called 
Ostgrund : a very inferior house, called Mid- 
grand, immediately adjoining, was the one 
occupied by Mr. Laing. Not quite a mile 
higher up the course of the river, is a fall of 
sufficient height to prevent the Salmon from 
ascending beyond. And two or three miles 
further is a much more picturesque cascade," 
celebrated for the number and size of the trout 
that haunt the pools below it : but I must not 
anticipate these piscatory details, which I 
intend to reserve for a separate chapter. 



206 TWO SUMMERS 

At Vserdalsoren I was most comfortably 
lodged at the house of the principal merchant, 
named Moe ; in the very same room once 
honoured by the presence of Carl J ohann, king 
of Sweden and Norway. Somewhat less than 
a couple of miles out of the town, at a spot 
called Stikklestad, is the site of a famous battle, 
in the year 1030, where Olaf the Saint, (who 
first introduced Christianity into Norway,) was 
slain by his " discontented subjects." There 
is an ancient and modern monument to com- 
memorate the event; neither of them any- 
wise remarkable for taste, beauty, or appro- 
priateness. 

Prom Vserdal we see nothing of the Fjord, 
until we come to Steenkjser, a rising little 
town, on what may be considered, the head of 
the Fjord of Trondhjem (although an inferior 
branch extends some miles further Northwards) 
and at the point of discharge of the waters of 
the Snaasen Vand. Close to it is a small 
plain, similar to the one already described in 



IN NORWAY. 207 

Stordal, which, like it, serves for the exercising 
place of the military belonging to this district. 
The annual presence of 500 or 600 men for 
six weeks gives a great impulse to the trade 
of Stee^kjser : besides which, its position 
renders it the great depot for supplying a 
large tract in the interior with articles obtained 
from Trondhjem. Moreover, about two or 
three miles up the river is a Foss, where Consul 
Gramm has erected saw mills : the manufac- 
ture and export of the deals necessarily afford 
additional employment. 

Not far from the Foss, two Scotchmen, from 
Aberdeen, have established themselves as far- 
mers : to whom I should recommend any of 
my countrymen desirous of information to pay 
a visit. They are intelligent men ; and seem 
to like the country. I have no doubt they will 
contribute to improve the system of agriculture 
pursued by the natives. They have discovered 
some seams of limestone, interstratified with 
the mica slate, in a manner not uncommon in 



208 TWO SUMMERS 

that rock : this they employ successfully as 
manure, but hitherto no one has imitated them. 
Still further inland, is a very extensive bed of 
marine shells, lying nearly 100 feet above 
the present level of the sea : its limits are not 
known, but it has been observed some miles 
at least to the north-east of Faa Church. In- 
deed, the Scotchmen assured me, that whenever 
they cut through the superincumbent peat of 
the vallies they almost invariably find marine 
shells, some broken and some perfect, of ap- 
parently the same species as now inhabit the 
neighbouring seas. 

A tolerable number of Salmon frequent the 
Steenkjser river during the season, which may, 
perhaps, afford an Angler amusement for a 
day or two. I must, however, inform him, 
that in addition to other drawbacks, the stream 
is so full of floating and sunken deals, as to 
render it extremely difficult to kill a fish of any 
size : besides, who would linger long, within so 
short a distance of the Namsen? Yet this 



IN NORWAY. 209 

river used to be the " ultima Thule" even to 
the most adventurous sportsmen ; until about 
seven or eight years ago, a couple of Irishmen, 
who had heard of the fame of the Namsen, 
penetrated to Fiskum Foss; of which they 
brought back such a report, that many have 
been induced to follow their steps. Since their 
time, the roads have been very much improved; 
so that it is no longer an expedition attended 
with danger or great difficulty. 

Steenkjser is ten and a half Norwegian miles, 
or seventy-four English, from Trondbjem : a 
short distance beyond it, two roads branch off 
to the North, by either of which the Namsen 
may be easily reached in two days. One line 
passes along the Northern shore of Lake Snaa- 
sen, as far as Vexet, near Sem ; whence it crosses 
the Mountains to Ekker. The present stages, 
1839, (for they are constantly changed,) are 
from Steenkjser to Foiling, one Norwegian 
mile : to Quam, one mile : to Rygh, one mile : 
to Hammer, five-eighths of a mile : to Vexet, 



210 TWO SUMMERS 

one mile and a quarter : to Grong, on the 
Namsen, three miles : or in all, about eight 
Norwegian, or fifty-six English miles. Much 
of the road is hilly and bad ; but presents in- 
teresting views over an extremely wild country. 
The portion of it that passes along the Lake 
may be better performed in boat : the scenery 
of the Snaasen is pleasing rather than grand ; 
and its piscatory capabilities have never been 
put to the test, though it is known to contain 
abundance of trout. 

The other line of road, by Elden and Bang- 
sund, is three Norwegian miles longer, but 
is more interesting both for its scenery, and 
the opportunity it gives of seeing the lower 
part of the Namsen. Probably the Angler 
will go by it, and return by the Snaasen Vand. 
At Steenkjser, excellent quarters may be had 
with the principal merchant, named Huns- 
gaard : he also speaks English. Elden and 
Hund are fair specimens of the usual Norwe- 
gian Inn: and tolerable accommodations for 
the night may be found at Bangsund. 



IN NORWAY. 211 

Taking the latter line, immediately after 
leaving Steenkjser, an imperfect Druidical cir- 
cle is seen to the right : the stones are not 
large, and seem to be arranged exactly in the 
same manner as with us. I have observed no 
Cromlechs in the North; but in the South 
of Scandinavia they are not unfrequent. 
Great part of the second stage passes along 
the rocky shores of the most Northern arm 
of the Trondhjem Fjord : it is wild and pic- 
turesque, and glimpses are caught of much 
wilder and loftier mountains beyond. 

As soon as the season is sufficiently advanced 
for the Aquatic birds to bring their broods 
down from their respective breeding grounds, 
these shores are lined with various species of 
ducks : and as, in addition to them, game, 
and rare birds, are frequently seen in the 
forests through which the road passes, the 
sportsman should always have his gun ready 
at hand. At Berg, if the traveller have time 
while his dinner is preparing, he may stroll 



212 TWO SUMMERS 

down to the neighbouring valley, where a 
lateral stream of considerable magnitude falls 
over a succession of rocky ledges, (each fur- 
nished with saw mills,) into a river that shortly 
conveys its waters into the Fjord below Over- 
gaard. It is a scene pleasing to the painter, 
or the meditative Tourist. 

Two or three miles from Berg, we come to 
the land-locked arm of a small Fjord, which 
till within these few years was the only place 
where boats could be obtained, to commence 
the dreary long voyage to the North Cape. 
The extension of the road, and the subsequent 
establishment of Steam boats from Trondhjem 
to Hammerfest, every fortnight, have com- 
pletely altered the destinies of this little port. 
It is now quite deserted. 

From Berg to Bangsund is about sixteen 
English miles; and from its character, much 
more than its length, it is one of the severest 
stages for the horses that I have ever encoun- 
tered. The scenery, however, is so wildly mag- 



IN NORWAY. 213 

nificent, that no one who is in the least suited 
for a Norwegian tour, will regret the time he 
is obliged to linger through it. I fear it is not 
in my power to convey any adequate idea of 
this savage Pass. The road winds through a 
mountainous district, abutting on the Northern 
Ocean ; where the mountains are all rock, and 
the rocks are mountains ; always bold, often 
perpendicular, yet invariably, wherever prac- 
ticable, clothed to their topmost heights, with 
noble pines ; the spruce occupying the lower, 
the Scotch fir, of unusually large dimensions, 
and most picturesque forms, claiming the 
highest ground. These mountains are so irre- 
gularly disposed, that unexpected glades, and 
deep glens, of extreme beauty, successively 
break in upon the view : while from many 
a point, glimpses of the neighbouring Fjord 
rather tantalize than satisfy the eye. The for- 
mation of such a road in so poor and thinly 
populated a district presented great difficulties : 
the ascents are long and severe ; and from 



214 TWO SUMMERS 

being so recently made, the ground is very 
soft and heavy for draught. 

When I last passed this way, it still exhibited 
extraordinary traces of the hurricane that had 
devastated a portion of the country, a month or 
two after I quitted it in the Autumn of 1837. 
The most Southerly point where I observed its 
ravages was on Lake Snaasen ; whence it took 
a Northerly direction to the Valley of the 
Namsen, and thence trended to the North-east, 
as far at least as Fiskum Foss. It occurred 
during the night ; and I needed not the assur- 
ance of the natives to comprehend with what 
immense fury it must have raged. Its course 
was, and must be for many years, perfectly 
traceable by its devastations : nothing within 
its sphere of action, could withstand its force. 
I nowhere observed it to exceed more than 200 
or 300 yards in width ; outside that line every 
tree was undisturbed ; but within it, all were 
torn up by the roots, and strewed like bul- 
rushes, in the general direction of the hurricane 



IN NORWAY. 215 

for it is justly entitled to this appellation by its 
violence. 

It is most delightful on emerging from this 
romantic chaos, to find oneself on the delicious 
shores of the arm of the sea, whereon Bangsund 
is situated. So much of the impression of a 
scene depends upon the weather, health, spirits, 
&c. that I scarcely know how far I must attri- 
bute the effect this lovely Bay has produced 
upon my memory, to the circumstance of my 
having always viewed it with the accessories 
of most heavenly weather, and the excitement 
produced by my anticipations, or recollections, 
of the Namsen. But, surely, under any cir- 
cumstances, it must be considered a lovely Bay : 
the exquisitely shaped basin, suddenly narrow- 
ing into a rock -bound creek, beyond which it is 
again seen expanding into its parent Fjord; 
the whole too encompassed and girt in, by 
towering mountain masses, must, at all times, 
delight and captivate the lover of nature, but 
when seen under the glorious hues of a 



216 TWO SUMMERS 

Northern sunset, as I have seen this picture, it 
will be cherished among those which the memory 
retains and clings to with the greatest pleasure. 

I confess that the aspect of the last stage, 
from Berg to Bangsund, had made me some- 
what alarmed as to the feasibility of my future 
progress. It really seemed as if all practicable 
road was about to cease ; and when I reached 
the grass-grown verge of the Fjord of Bangsund, 
I began seriously to contemplate the possibility 
of being obliged to perform the rest of the route 
on foot, or at best on horseback. For to turn 
back, so near to the great object of my expedi- 
tion, never once entered into my contemplation; 
no, not if I should even be compelled to carry 
my baggage on my back, and finish my journey 
barefooted. However, on crossing the broad 
Ferry of Bangsund, the country quite changed: 
no more huge mountains, and rocky wilds; 
but a comparatively champaign country, with 
the usual Norwegian cultivation, and varied by 
low wooded heights. 



IN NORWAY. 217 

I scarcely dare describe the feelings with 
which I approached Spillum, the first stage 
from Bangsund, and where I knew I should 
obtain the first view of the Namsen : they 
would appear both incomprehensible and ridi- 
culous in the eyes of any but an " Anglo- 
maniac." I had hitherto met with such very 
indifferent sport in Norway, and had been so 
grievously disappointed with every river I had 
yet tried, that I could not help dreading I 
was doomed to encounter a still heavier dis- 
appointment at the stream, to fish which I 
had already travelled 1500 long miles. 

It was therefore with a feverish excitement 
that I ran up a hill that overhung the Post- 
house of Spillum, and promised evidently to 
command the lower course of the Namsen, 
near its entrance into the sea. The very first 
glance satisfied me I had at last reached the 
real river for an Angler : a deep broad stream 
rolled majestically into a beautiful bay, that 
in its turn opened into a noble Fjord. For 

VOL. I. L 



218 TWO SUMMERS 

a long way up, I could see tlie river maintained 
the same equable course : and the character 
of the country, combined with the information 
I had obtained along the road, satisfied me 
that there was not for thirty or forty miles, 
any obstruction to the ascent of the Salmon. 
That single glance relieved my breast of an 
indescribable load of doubt and anxiety. 

In the course of this day's journey, I had 
to cross the Namsen four times : but even in 
these wild parts I found the Ferries, as usual 
throughout Norway, well conducted and cheap: 
the ferrymen were uniformly civil, and for an 
extra trifle grateful to a degree very unusual 
among their class in other countries. 

The lower part of the Namsen traverses 
a fertile and very level country ; in conse- 
quence of which the tide reaches at least six 
or seven miles above Hund ; say, fifteen miles 
from its mouth. Still higher up, however, 
the hills exhibit more of an Alpine appearance, 
and approach nearer to the river : the scenery 



IN NORWAY. 219 

becomes grander, and the alternate streams 
and pools far more satisfactory to an Angler's 
eye. It was with difficulty I could keep mine 
sufficiently off them to enable me to drive in 
safety through some of the intricate passes \ 
for the road latterly began to assume a very 
primitive character. 

However, at length I reached the last Ferry 
near Grong; with the intention of proceeding to 
Ekker, an excellent house, belonging to a most 
excellent man, but unfortunately upwards of two 
miles from the Biver. This was too great a dis- 
tance for an impatient Angler, and counter- 
balanced its other advantages. Therefore ob- 
serving two or three good looking Gaards close 
to the Ferry, I inquired at the nearest whether 
I could not obtain there all the accommodation 
I I needed : which, after the list I gave of my 
. preparations for the expedition, the reader will 
easily believe, was not much. My overtures 
were instantly received most favourably : and 
I was soon installed in the best rooms of the 
l 2 



220 TWO SUMMERS 

house. My host's name was Iver, of Mediaa ; 
a worthy, kind-hearted man as ever lived : his 
family consisted only of his wife, a son of 
about 17, and a daughter 14 years old. I 
found them all cleanly, civil, and obliging in 
the extreme ; and ready to do any thing in their 
power to conduce to my comfort ; therefore, as 
the situation was most convenient, I made their 
house my head quarters, during both my visits 
to the Namsen : and if I were ever fortunate 
enough to go there again, should do the same. 
I had a neatly finished chamber, of just 
sufficient length to admit a twenty foot rod 
to be hung on pegs, without being taken to 
pieces; a great convenience to the Angler. 
Beyond it, was a smaller room, where I could 
stow away my stores and valuables under lock 
and key : on the other side was a little kit- * 
chen, used only for my purposes, the family 
kitchen and apartments being under a distinct 
roof. The whole was very neatly boarded, and 
perfectly clean : what could an Angler wish 



IN NORWAY. 221 

for more ! My brother enthusiasts, if such 
there be that peruse these volumes, will picture 
to themselves the delight with which I took 
possession of my wooden palace, and retired 
early to my humble little bed, in the almost 
vain hope of shortening the interval to the 
wished for morning, by courting slumbers that 
my anxiety scarcely suffered to visit my eyelids. 



222 



TWO SUMMERS 



CHAPTER VI. 

Description of the River Namsen — Method of Angling — Good 
boatmen — -First day's sport — Piscatory details — Heat of the 
weather, and annoyance of insects — Distribution of Fish — 
Removal to Fiskum Foss — Dangers of road — Badness of 
accommodation — Excellence of sport — Sensation of the Na- 
tives — Character of the upper part of the river — Poor living 
■ — Success at Fossland — "Cobbe," or the Seal — My heaviest 
Salmon — -Warnings to retreat — Adieu to ' 'Minimum House" 
—To Fossland — To Mediaa — Recapitulation of sport. 

I was now fairly installed upon the Namsen ; 
within two degrees of the Arctic Circle. All my 
fears of the impracticability of reaching it, or of 
breaking my rods, or of losing the most impor- 
tant parts of .my baggage were at an end; all 
my misgivings that I might find the river already 
preoccupied, or, after all, not worthy of its 
fame, had most happily vanished. Not a single 
Angler had been heard of ; and when I looked 



IN NORWAY. 223 

upon the broad crystal flood, that rushed by my 
Gaard, I confessed at once that it was the king 
of salmon rivers that bad .ever greeted my eye. 

The Namsen (for so it is invariably spelled, 
though the natives usually pronounce it as if 
written Namson) takes its rise from several 
large lakes, situated within the bosom of the 
mountains that form the Southern boundary of 
the province of Nordland, and are the favourite 
resort of the Laplanders, from the circumstance 
of their being early cleared of snow. After 
traversing a wild tract ot forest, scarcely in- 
habited by man, it flows past Heimdal-hougen, 
(the loftiest and finest mountain of this district,) 
when it enters a broad upland Valley extensively 
cultivated ; at the end of which it suddenly falls 
over a perpendicular wall of gneiss, between 
100 and 200 feet high; and thence struggles 
through what may be termed a succession of 
rocky gorges, from the last of which it emerges 
just above the Ferry of Mediaa. . From this 
point, its stream is broader, and its course 



224 TWO SUMMERS 

more placid, though still affording beautiful 
rapids, as well as pools, to delight the Angler. 

In consequence of its flowing through a 
country of primitive rocks, in which silex is the 
chief ingredient, the water of the Namsen be- 
comes extraordinarily pure and transparent, 
immediately after it is cleansed from the melt- 
ing snow. The period of its thus clearing of 
course varies according to the season : but in 
general it may be said that the snow is suffi- 
ciently carried away to admit of Angling, by the 
very beginning of July. The Angler will, very 
t probably, find this Northern river discoloured 
until quite the middle of that month : but he 
will soon learn that Salmon at least (though 
not so trout, perhaps,) will take the fly in water 
that a Scottish Angler would call " full of snow 
brew." Even after heavy rains the Namsen 
clears in a few hours : and happy is the fisher- 
man that is ready on its banks to attack the 
shoals of greedy Salmon that are then sure to 
rush up its flooded streams. 



IN NORWAY. 225 

Prom the breadth of the river, and the cha- 
racter of its shores, it is utterly impossible to 
fish it except from a boat : and again, so strong 
is the current, that it would scarcely be feasible 
to row against it, and cast with any regularity, 
in the way practised on the Tweed. The only 
plan, therefore, is to commence at the head of 
the stream, and row the boat, with its head up 
the current, as nearly as possible in a straight 
line, diagonally across; returning, after the 
same fashion, some five yards lower down, and 
thus proceeding alternately from side to side, 
until the whole place is well fished over. The 
fly, meanwhile, is kept playing from fifteen to 
twenty yards below the boat ; and a little prac- 
tice will enable the artist to make it dwell at 
the most likely spots, and swim at the right 
depth. 

This is doubtless a very killing method ; for, 
if the boat be well managed, the fly can be pre- 
sented in the most tempting manner to almost 
every Salmon in the river. But on the other 
l 3 



226 TWO SUMMERS 

hand, it reduces the inexperienced Tyro, and 
the accomplished Angler, nearly to the same 
level ; since the most difficult feat in the art, 
that of casting the fly far and well, is done 
away with; and consequently the hooking a 
fish depends at least as much upon the boatmen, 
as the fisherman. This is the great defect of 
the Namsen, as an Angling river. 

There is an abundance of excellent boats, 
the river being used in preference to the roads 
as the chief highway for the transit of all heavy 
goods. They are built entirely of fir; sharp 
pointed, and rising high at each end ; and as 
light as a cork. They bound safely on the top 
of the breakers, down the most fearful looking 
rapids; which again they ascend in a way I 
have nowhere seen so much, or so well practised, 
as on the Namsen. Oars are out of the question 
to overcome so violent a stream : each man, 
therefore, standing at either end of the boat 
takes a long, but light fir pole, which they 
rapidly and simultaneously strike into the 



IN NORWAY. 227 

water, on the side next the land ; and thus 
push their buoyant canoes up the strongest 
currents, at a rate scarcely conceivable. Very 
great dexterity is required to guide a boat in 
this manner, among the rocks and rapids they 
have to encounter : at some of the worst places, 
it is occasionally necessary that one should go 
on shore with a long rope, while the other re- 
mains in the stern with his pole. 

The natives of Nummedal, or Naumdal, (for 
so this vale of the Namsen is called,) are capital 
boatmen : and there is no lack of them, at the 
tariff that has been established by English 
Anglers, viz. four marks per diem, for two men 
and a boat, they finding their own victuals. 
I had not been long arrived at Mediaa, before 
the same boatmen who had attended a friend 
of mine the previous year, came to offer their 
services, which I readily accepted; and we 
agreed to make our first essay at an early 
hour the next morning. Their names were 
Lorenz of Mediaa, and Eric of Grong; both 



228 TWO SUMMERS 

of them excellent boatmen, and obliging fellows : 
the former lives with his aged father, in a 
Gaard immediately adjoining my own qnarters ; 
and friends of mine have subsequently been 
well accommodated at his house. 

With what nervous anxiety did I get my 
gear in order that evening ! how carefully did 
I examine the splices of my rod, and try the 
strength of my lines ! for I knew that they 
were no pigmy grilse that I was about to 
encounter. Before five o'clock, on the morning 
of the fifteenth July, 1837, I first threw my 
line upon the waters of the Namsen; a day 
never to be forgotten in my piscatory annals. 
The river seemed to be in perfect order ; and 
I had put on a most captivating fly, prepared 
for the occasion by Martin Kelly, of a size I 
should no where else have dreamed of using 
even in March. 

What was to be its success ? I was not long 
left in suspense ; for within a quarter of an 
hour after leaving the bank, at the head of 



IN NORWAY. 229 

the first stream, in the midst of the breaking 
-water, I *saw a large circle, and at the same 
moment felt I had firmly hooked a good fish. 
He instantly rushed down the rapid stream, 
plunging violently whenever in the slightest 
degree checked : and though we pulled at once 
for the shore, he had run out more than one 
hundred yards of line, before I could leap on 
the land. I then scrambled as well as I could 
after him, among the loose shingle, panting 
with agitation more than exertion, and wheeling 
up my line as fast as my aching muscles would 
permit. Most fortunately, notwithstanding 
the great length of line out, I was enabled to 
keep it clear of the rocks : and at length suc- 
ceded in drawing my silvery foe* into deeper 
and smoother water. 

Not that he was by any means beaten as 
yet. Many a time did he run out the spinning 
reel, to my great alarm : many a race did he 
give me along the treacherous bank. However, 
conscious of the strength of my tackle, I made 



V 



230 TWO SUMMERS 

him fight hard for every foot of line, and saw 
that he evidently came towards the land, with 
diminished energies after each struggle. My 
Swedish attendant being a novice in the art 
of gaffing, missed several opportunities that a 
Tweed Fisherman would have considered cer- 
tain : but at length after three quarters of an 
hour of most splendid sport, the fish was 
successfully gaffed, and laid on the green 
sward. The hook was scarcely extracted from 
his mouth, when he was accurately weighed, 
and proved to be a trifle over twenty-eight 
pounds, exactly the weight of the largest 
Salmon I had ever before caught. 

None but a brother Angler can appreciate 
my feelings # at this success of my first essay on 
the Namsen : it seemed at once to justify all 
I had heard of its reputation. I afterwards 
rose four fish ; two of which I killed without 
any great difficulty: each of them weighed 
fourteen pounds. The weather was sultrily 
hot, and by eight o' clock the sun was so power- 



* 



IN NORWAY. 231 

fill that no more fish would rise. I, therefore, 
returned to my breakfast not a little gratified 
with my morning's performance. 

The heat continued so great throughout the 
day as to put fishing out of the question before 
the evening, when I again sallied forth ; and 
it was not long ere I killed a fine Salmon of 
fifteen pounds weight, in one of the upper 
streams under the village of Grong. * I did 
not move another fish, until I came to the 
beautiful pool above Moe, (called Spsekkan,) 
where I rose two. One of them escaped in a 
moment : but the other appeared to be well 
hooked, and notwithstanding his impetuous 
struggles and immense size (for none of those 
present estimated him under forty pounds) I 
had little fear for the result, in so spacious and 
unencumbered a pool as that where he was. 
I had played him for at least a quarter of an 

* The position of the several localities mentioned in this 
description of my success on the Namsen, will be easily- 
observed on the little map of the river appended to these 
volumes. 



232 TWO SUMMERS 

hour, and had controlled his first and most 
dangerous rushes ; when to my inexpressible 
mortification I felt he was off, and eventually 
on drawing up the line, I found the hook fixed 
in a branch of a sunken tree, in which the fish 
had evidently entangled my tackle. What a 
trial for Philosophy ! Notwithstanding this last 
mishap, however, I returned home quite satis- 
fied of the Namsen's superiority to any other 
Salmon River I had ever fished; and could 
not help looking forward to the enjoyment of 
glorious sport during the four or five weeks 
that I intended devoting to it. 

The very next day happened to be a day of 
rest. On the 17th we took the water by four 
o' clock ; having discovered that after eight, the 
heat became insupportable. The high hopes 
with which I started seemed little likely to be 
realized ; for I did not rise a fish until I came to 
Spsekkan Pool, though I tried two miles of most 
likely water, with the greatest care. There, 
however, I hooked and killed a Salmon of 



IN NORWAY. 233 

nineteen pounds, a handsome fish in any river ; 
with which I returned to my quarters, and 
rested during the day. 

The morning's experience had not made ma 
very sanguine for the evening; and for the 
first two hours after our return to the river, 
I did not get a rise. At last, in the Reach 
under Quittum, I observed two or three fish 
spring, that apparently had only just run up 
from the lower part of the river. One of the 
largest of these, weighing thirteen pounds and 
a half, I soon killed ; besides slightly hooking 
two others : I also caught a very small Grilse, 
of four pounds ; one of several that I saw jump 
out of the water : whence it was evident that 
the Grilse were beginning to make their ap- 
pearance from the sea. 

I then came to my favourite pool above Moe, 
where I had scarcely begun to fish, when I 
hooked, and killed, after great sport, a beau- 
tiful fish, weighing twenty- six pounds; and 
shortly afterwards, in the lower part of the 



234 TWO SUMMERS 

same pool, I killed another of fourteen pounds. 
It was now eleven o'clock, and I, therefore, out 
of compassion to my men, proposed giving up ; 
but in rowing across the pool for that purpose, 
I hooked a fine salmon of eighteen pounds, 
which I landed, after a long struggle, by the 
glorious twilight of an Arctic Midnight. This 
was so satisfactory a finish to a splendid day's 
sport, that I would try no more, but walked 
home, leaving them to pole the boat up at their 
leisure. 

On arriving at Mediaa, I found my host 
and all the neighbouring farmers, working by 
moonlight, in order to escape the intense heat 
of the day. I had little anticipated that in 
these high latitudes I should find the direct 
heat of the sun almost as great as in Southern 
Italy. Yet so it is : and from the general 
stillness of the air in these confined Vallies, 
a sense of oppression is felt that quite incapa- 
citates for exertion, during the middle of the 
day. The persecutions of the Insect world 



IN NORWAY. 235 

I was better prepared to expect : but I did 
not fancy them the more tolerable for being 
anticipated. It is absolutely necessary for any 
man not furnished with the hide of a Rhino- 
ceros, to wear gloves while fishing : and if the 
Angler be fond of smoking, he will find the 
fumes of his cigar a considerable protection to 
his face. I cannot say that I have been quite 
driven to the expedient of oiling my visage, 
which is said to be indispensable in Lapland. 

Not only do the most venomous Musquitoes 
persecute you by the river side, but winged 
vermin of all sorts follow you into the recesses 
of your chamber, and seize on you when 
defenceless in your bed. They are intolerable 
nuisances in close, sultry weather : how grateful 
is the air that cools down the temperature, and 
for a while suspends their attacks ! 

After remaining on the water so late the 
previous night, I felt little inclined to start 
early the next morning; and therefore de- 
ferred fishing until the evening. In the course 



236 TWO SUMMERS 

of tlie morning I endeavoured to apportion, 
with as much equity as I could, the produce 
of yesterday's Angling, which amounted to 
nearly one hundred pounds. I had expected 
that Salmon at the Namsen would be like 
coals at Newcastle; but such was far from 
being the case. The natives had not yet 
learned the art of fly-fishing; and from the 
general character of the river, few parts can 
be netted, unless in very low water : besides 
which there are at this season much more 
urgent calls on their time. In the Autumn, 
when the Salmon frequent the shallows for the 
purposes of spawning, the peasants having by 
that time secured their harvest, destroy the 
poor fish with flambeaux, and an instrument 
exactly like the Scottish, and which they also 
here call the "Lyster." I found therefore 
that Salmon at this earlier season was a very 
important addition to the food of the poor 
people ; and that if I wished to avoid jealousies, 
I must be careful in its distribution. I even- 



IN NORWAY. 237 

tually laid it down as a sort of general rule, 
that one half of what I caught should be divided 
among the Bonder, whose land bordered the 
water I fished : the other half I reserved for 
my boatmen, my host, and myself: the latter 
by no means coming in for the Lion^s share. 

Having now fished the lower part two days 
following, and being desirous of seeing some- 
thing of the upper course of the river, I proceeded 
in the evening, through the gorge I before 
mentioned, toward the village of Fossland, 
about two miles above Mediaa. I was greatly 
struck by the romantic character of the scenery. 
For some distance, the stream is hemmed in 
by very lofty and bold, dark crags, that sink 
perpendicularly into deep pools, as pure as 
crystal: at other spots, the rocks recede a 
little, but lose nothing of their height, or savage 
aspect. 

I did not stop to fish before I reached the 
long pool above Fossland, called Lokke Gar 
by the natives, but which I have named " the 



238 TWO SUMMERS 

Eagles' Pool/' from the circumstance of a pair 
of those birds invariably hovering over the 
neighbonring cliffs. I killed here a lively 
Salmon of fifteen pounds, and rose three other s, 
one of them a good sized fish : but they all 
got away in the most provoking manner, which 
I attributed partly to the long continuance 
of sultry weather. I only rose one other on 
my way homewards : this sport was nothing 
in comparison to what I ought to have had 
in these splendid pools, which are favourite 
resting places of the largest fish. 

The following afternoon, fishing below Me- 
diaa, I only killed three small Grilse, and 
saw but one large Salmon rise : I therefore 
determined to leave this part of the River for 
a while, and run up to Fiskum Foss, with the 
hope of catching some of the fish already 
lodged there, before a flood should come. 

The distance from Mediaa is not more than 
eight or nine miles : but from the character 
of the road, it can scarcely be accomplished 



! 



IN NORWAY. 239 

with carriages, in less than three hours. It 
is the narrowest path to be traversed by 
wheels I ever saw, and in several spots winds 
up and down frightful precipices : the horses 
too are little used to draught, and being shoe- 
less cannot keep their footing, whenever the 
clay, of which most of the road is composed, 
has been rendered slippery by recent rains. 
Out of four times that I passed this way, I 
met with three bad accidents, that might have 
been worse : which so satisfied me that I had 
at last reached the end of all travellable roads, 
that on my subsequent visit to the Namsen, 
I always preferred a boat. As might be ex- 
pected, however, from this description, much 
of the scenery is interestingly wild and pic- 
turesque. 

After passing through the village of Glas- 
houg, (more commonly called Gartland, or, 
Gothland, for I am not sure which is the most 
correct orthography,) we came within hearing, 
and soon within sight, of Fiskum Foss, which 



240 TWO SUMMERS 

we left the road to view to advantage. It is 
one of the finest Falls I liave seen in Norway. 
The whole River precipitates itself at once 
over an almost perpendicular ledge of Gneiss, 
or Mica slate, in which quartz forms by far 
the principal ingredient. I should estimate 
its height to be from 100 to 150 feet : the 
scenery around is appropriately savage : the 
water of the most silvery brightness, that 
element can possibly assume. Often as I have 
viewed this noble Fall beneath the powerful 
rays of the noonday sun, or in the azure depth 
of an autumnal midnight, I never omitted 
on my way to and from my boat, to linger for 
a few moments on a knoll whence it is best 
commanded, and contemplated each time with 
fresh pleasure its varying aspects. 

About a mile further we came to the hamlet 
of Fiskum, where I intended to lodge, at a 
farmhouse, which a friend of mine had occu- 
pied the preceding summer. I found it even 
worse than it had been described to me. It 



IN NORWAY. 241 

consisted of the usual collection of log-houses, 
ranged more or less together ; but they all had 
a more than usually dilapidated appearance, 
and that nameless air of discomfort which at 
once gives the most unfavourable impression as 
to the order and tidiness to be expected within. 

An inspection of the interior only confirmed 
this impression. The rooms were gloomy and 
dirty; the windows broken; the doors would 
not shut ; the furniture was poor ; the crockery 
most scanty. The desolate look of the domicile 
was doubtless increased by the absence of the 
family at the S setter, seven or eight miles off : 
and perhaps my feelings towards it were some- 
what embittered from not being able to ob- 
tain any thing better than dry barley cake, 
and bad salt herrings, wherewith to satisfy 
a craving mountain appetite. Upon this in- 
sufficient fare, washed down with a little Cog- 
nac, myself and two Englishmen who had 
accompanied me to see the Foss, were fain to 
dine al fresco. 

VOL. I. M 



242 TWO SUMMERS 

Yet was the scene not without charms that 
soon made us forget our meagre meal, and chill- 
ing reception. The majestic Heimdal-hougen, 
and many other heights of lesser note, gave 
an Alpine character to the back ground; while 
the broad Vale, that bordered the river at our 
feet, was covered with luxuriant crops of barley, 
and potatoes. But where were the cultivators ? 
for no human being, but ourselves, was visible 
in the wide prospect we commanded. All at 
this season were either with their cattle at 
the mountain Ssetters; or were cutting grass 
along the slopes and dells of the lower hills. 

The smooth sweep of the river was visible 
up to the verge of the precipice over which 
it so suddenly plunges : a perpetual column 
of spray rose above the abyss, wherein it is 
received : and the cataract's eternal roar, now 
dying in the distance, now swelling on the 
ear, with the fitful wind, added Nature's voice 
to complete the magic of the scene. Such 
was my first introduction to "Minimum 



IN NORWAY. 243 

House for so we christened our quarters, 
as affording the minimum of comforts, with 
which an Englishman, accustomed to the 
conveniences of life, will put up for the sake 
of sport. 

Meanwhile, however, a messenger had been 
despatched with all speed to the Ssetter ; and 
before night, not only the most important 
members of the family, but also (scarce less 
important) a cow and a plentiful supply of de- 
licious butter, arrived. On our parts also we 
had not been idle ; so that affairs looked much 
more promisingly, when I retired to rest, after 
making all my arrangements for opening the 
campaign early the next morning. 

My host, Eric, and his son, Ole, offered to 
be my boatmen : and better rowers, more 
obliging and willing fellows, I never would 
wish to have. If only the lady of the house 
had possessed a similar character, I should have 
been sufficiently comfortable : but I found her 
not only now, but after a long acquaintance, 
m 2 



244 TWO SUMMERS 

far from intelligent, very far from cleanly, and 
still further from being industrious. She was 
glad "enough to finger the money; but, with 
her own consent, would give herself little 
trouble to earn it. 

I was unexpectedly waked the next morning 
by a friend, who had promised to join me on 
the Namsen ; but wished first to see the sun at 
midnight, near Tornea. Having satisfactorily 
accomplished this object, he had crossed the 
mountains to Vserdal, and had travelled night 
and day till he overtook me. Wishing to 
discuss our mutual adventures, we fished to- 
gether in the same boat : but partly owing 
to the sultry state of the weather, and more 
to our ignorance of the river, had very indif- 
ferent sport. We only rose three or four fish, 
and I killed but one of eleven pounds, which 
at any rate insured us a dinner for the following 
day, a matter of no trifling importance. 

We had found it so inconvenient to angle 
in one boat, that the next day we took each 



IN NORWAY. 245 

our own : but in consequence of the extreme 
heat of the day, thought it not advisable to 
sally forth until the afternoon. Leaving my 
friend the upper pools, I shot down the " Long 
Rapid/' and came to the beautiful pool below 
Rosssetter, which we have named " J acoVs 
Pool/' from its surly proprietor.* It was full 
of Salmon : indeed, whenever the Angler finds 
few or none there, he must calculate on little 
sport elsewhere. 

At this place I rose twelve fish within a 
couple of hours : six of them I lost by what 
I thought ill luck, as much as ill manage- 
ment. One I then believed, and still believe, 
to be the largest I ever hooked : he was lying 
on the verge of a sunken ledge, immediately 
beyond which the water is said to be fifty 
feet deep. The instant he took the fly, he 
plunged head foremost into the crystal depth, 

* The reader will easily follow these details by referring to 
the little map of this part of the Namsen, appended to this 
volume. 



246 TWO SUMMERS 

like a whale " sounding and cut my line 
against the edge of the rock. From the good 
view we had of his enormous length and breadth, 
and the whirlpool he caused in his descent, we 
were all convinced he could not be under fifty 
pounds — probably more. 

Another salmon of at least thirty pounds 
ran the line out with the rapidity usual to the 
giants of the Namsen; when unluckily the 
handle of the swiftly whirling reel caught for 
a moment in a chain I foolishly wore round 
my neck, and in an instant the enormously 
strong gut was snapped asunder like pack- 
thread. 

I have seldom seen a large fish in this river 
take his capture quietly: his first rush is 
usually tremendous ; and if at that time he 
meet with the least check, no tackle, how- 
ever good and strong, will bear the sudden 
strain. Several times have I had 150 yards 
of line run out within the first half minute : 
and it was not before I had lost many noble 



IN NORWAY. 247 

fish, that I learned how to manage them 
properly. At first I made it a rule, under 
all circumstances, to row to land, as soon as 
possible after hooking a salmon: the conse- 
quence of which often was, that the fish was 
already more than 100 yards down the rapid 
stream, ere I reached the shore; and before 
I could shorten my line, there was every risk, 
from its length and the character of the stream, 
of its being carried under a rock. 

After I had become better acquainted with 
the tactics of these monsters, and had taught 
my boatmen what to do, I found it in general 
by far the best plan, to follow the fish, in the 
boat, with a short and tight line, (the point of 
the rod being well raised up,) until his first 
energies were baffled, and he was brought into 
a good roomy place; and then to land. Some- 
times, indeed, after running down the stream, 
he would rush up it again with almost equal 
rapidity, and perhaps on the opposite side ; 
when, unless he were soon turned, he was 



248 TWO SUMMERS 

almost sure to escape,, as the torrent inevitably 
carried tlie line far below the fish, and deprived 
me of all command over the struggling victim. 

All these difficulties of course infinitely en- 
hance the satisfaction of successfully steering 
a huge monster through them all, into a 
secure basin, whence one feels there is little 
fear of his escaping. My boatmen usually 
were so attentive, as to perceive the rise and 
hooking of a salmon, almost as soon as I did 
myself : and if it appeared to be what we called 
" a Specie Fish" (I allowed a specie dollar, or 
four shillings, for every salmon I killed of thirty 
pounds, as an encouragement to the men) 
there was an exclamation of excitement, and 
perhaps a little unsteadiness for a moment, 
that a single word from me checked. 

The utmost attention was requisite, on the 
part both of the Angler and boatmen, particu- 
larly for the first few moments. If, as was 
generally the case with a large fish, he rushed 
like lightning down the stream, he must be 



IN NORWAY. 249 

allowed a free line : should it be checked in 
the slightest degree, he was assuredly lost. 
Perhaps he would run up the stream much 
quicker than we could follow him: perhaps 
he would strike directly across to the further 
side of the pool; more rarely he would sud- 
denly rush towards the boat, in which case it 
was difficult to prevent the line becoming loose. 
But under all circumstances, my object was, 
as soon as his movements were sufficiently 
decided, to follow them with the boat as closely 
as I could, with as short a line as possible, 
always feeling him firmly, but never pressing 
on him at first, so as to irritate him. 

In case the spot where I had hooked a 
salmon appeared tolerably favourable, I endea- 
voured to prevent his leaving it : but not 
unfrequently, after being turned two or three 
times, he would give an angry splash or two, 
and rush down the river, with a determination 
not to be controlled. " I cannot hold him : he 
will take the rapid ! be ready, we must follow 
m 3 



250 TWO SUMMERS 

him! now then for it \" A nervous moment ! 
to shoot down a Norwegian rapid, with its 
glancing waves, and threatening rocks ; and 
with a thirty pound salmon springing some 
forty or fifty yards lower down, and tugging 
furiously at the line like a wild beast. 

But should this dangerous passage be safely 
accomplished, and the fish be brought into a 
spacious, tranquil pool, the Angler has nothing 
to do but to land on the freest and most unen- 
cumbered shore, and then bear firmly and 
stoutly on his prey, to the full strength of his 
tackle. Half an hour of such treatment will 
bring the most vigorous of the tribe, panting 
and helpless to the bank ; the only fear being 
lest the hold should give way, which even with 
the immense hooks I employed was occasionally 
the case, from the great strain necessarily kept 
up for so long a time. 

Otherwise, he is dragged gradually to the 
rocky shore ; the inexpert Northern makes 
two or three clumsy, ineffectual attempts at 



IN NORWAY. 251 

gaffing, the alarm of which, gives the poor fish 
a momentary vigour : but at last he is brought 
so palpably and unresistingly alongside, that 
even Peder, can no longer miss him, and as 
soon as I have well ascertained that he is 
fairly landed, and have heard the exclamations 
at his unexpected weight, I throw myself on. 
the green bank, to relax my muscles and nerves 
from their excitement and fatigue. 

Notwithstanding the loss of the fine salmon 
that has given occasion to this digression, I 
killed six fish on my first visit to J acoVs Pool : 
five of which were small grilse, but one was 
upwards of twenty-four pounds, and gave me 
excellent sport. In a neighbouring stream, 
I rose six more fish, and killed one of thirteen 
pounds. On my return home, I was sorry to 
find my friend had been by no means so suc- 
cessful in the upper part of the river. 

The next day being the Sabbath, and there- 
fore an idle day, we were honoured by a large 
levee, of both sexes, anxious to catch a glimpse 



252 TWO SUMMERS 

of the strangers. Whenever our door was 
opened, tier above tier of curious faces might 
be seen peering into our room ; and upon the 
slightest encouragement it was half filled with 
young and old, who gazed, and wondered, and 
ejaculated to each other, at every trifling article 
of our home manufactures we chose to exhibit. 
Among others, was a very aged crone, almost 
blind, led by her granddaughter; who had 
come some distance, in order to see an English- 
man before she died. 

There were also two Finn girls, who had 
given up the wandering life of the Fjeld, for a 
fixed service in an adjoining Gaard. They 
had the characteristic features, the square face, 
the high cheek bones, the sunken eyes set in 
the corner of their sockets, and the ordinary 
stature of the Laplanders : and as my com- 
panion was considerably over, and myself not 
much under, six feet, they were, I doubt not, 
duly impressed with what must appear to them 
the gigantic proportions of the sons of Albion. 



IN NORWAY. 253 

The Parish of Grong, in which we were, 
extends to the borders both of Nordland, and 
Sweden. At its Northern extremity, among 
the mountains from which the Namsen takes 
its rise, there is a considerable establishment 
of Finns, or Laplanders : for whom two Chapels 
have recently been built. The Priest visits 
them for about two or three weeks during 
the height of the summer ; and gives them what 
instruction he can, his words being interpreted 
by his clerk. The rising generation are, how- 
ever, rapidly acquiring the Norsk language, a 
knowledge of which is now absolutely required 
before they can be admitted to Confirmation, 
the great rite of the Lutheran Church. The 
distance from Fiskum to the principal encamp- 
ment of the Lapps is between forty and fifty 
miles : but as it can only be performed on 
horseback or on foot, even in the finest weather, 
it requires two long and severe days to reach 
it. Their habits are too well known to need 
description. 



254 TWO SUMMERS 

In the evening it rained heavily, which pro- 
mised to cool the intense snltriness of the 
weather, and to bring up the large fish; for we 
were universally assured these follow the grilse, 
with the first flood. On Monday the 24th, my 
success was scarcely so great as I had antici- 
pated. During the whole day I killed four 
salmon, the largest of which weighed twenty 
pounds, and two white trout, of about three 
pounds each. I lost, however, as many niore, 
which I of course judged to be much heavier. 

The following day I went a little lower down 
the river than I had hitherto done, to the Pool 
under Gothland, at the head of the Long Reach. 
It seemed to be full of salmon, fresh run up, 
that had never seen a fly before ; amongst 
which I had splendid sport. In this one pool 
alone I caught six fish : four of them of good 
size. Th,e largest weighed upwards of thirty 
pounds, and took me above an hour to kill, 
notwithstanding he was in a good place : I 
thought he never would be tired. I also rose 



IN NORWAY. 255 

several others j and killed a grilse in another 
pool. The total weight I caught this day was 
103 pounds, the greatest I had as yet to 
record. 

Thinking we had given these upper pools a 
good trial, and that the lower part of the river 
must be swarming with salmon, we determined 
the next day to return to Mediaa by water. I 
passed rapidly over the higher streams, until I 
came to the first of the Fossland water, that 
which is named in the map the Head Fossland 
Pool. Here I soon hooked two very large fish, 
which consecutively broke my strong treble gut, 
by running it under the rocks, with which this 
place abounds. Neither of them were an ounce 
under thirty pounds : with the others I was 
more fortunate, killing six salmon, and two 
fine white trout; total weight upwards of eighty 
pounds. 

One of the former, a very powerful fish, I 
hooked close to a large rock in the centre of 
the river, at the bottom of the " Eagles' Pool/' 



256 TWO SUMMERS 

He fought very hard for his life, and ran into 
very dangerous places, so as to make me often 
quake for the result : he proved to be a male, 
between thirty-one and thirty-two pounds, very 
long, not deep, and ought to have been heavier. 
It is in this part of the river, about Fossland, 
that the heaviest fish have almost invariably 
been killed. 

We received a warm welcome from our old 
friends at Mediaa; but were disappointed to 
hear that the Salmon were all supposed to have 
run up to Fiskum Foss. The list appended to 
these volumes will sufficiently explain the tenor 
of my sport for the next few days : the only 
comment I need make, to account partly for 
my success not being greater than it was, is that 
I invariably fished after my friend, and the 
weather had again become extremely sultry. 

Having satisfied ourselves that at this season 
the upper part of the Namsen was much the 
best, we soon returned to Fiskum. I went by 
land, leaving my companion to fish up the 



IN NORWAY. 257 

river : and as I found I liad two or three hours 
in the evening, I took my rod to try the 
" Boat Pool/' with little expectation of success. 
However, in a very short time I caught two 
pretty Salmon of sixteen and fifteen pounds, 
besides a couple of grilse, and a white trout 
nearly six pounds : a delightful evening's sport 
under all the circumstances. 

The sultry heat again terminated in heavy 
rain; so that by Monday morning the river 
was quite flooded. It seemed useless to attempt 
fishing: but at length, being tired of staying 
in-doors, I sallied forth in the afternoon : and 
in spite of the foaming and discoloured appear- 
ance of the water, soon hooked five Salmon, 
not one of which, I am convinced, was un- 
der twenty pounds. The two that I killed, 
weighed twenty-eight and twenty-seven pounds. 
It was very evident that the heavy fish had 
really begun to ascend the Namsen, as had 
been predicted : and I augured great success 
for the morrow. 



258 TWO SUMMERS 

Not without reason : the water had fallen, 
the clouds were scudding merrily across the 
welkin, the air was clear, bracing, exhilarating. 
None but Salmon of the largest size were mov- 
ing : I killed five, which together weighed 117 
pounds, an extraordinary average ; and I be- 
sides rose seven others of at least equal calibre. 
One the biggest (of twenty-four pounds) being 
hooked foul, gave me great trouble to land. 

The following day also I had good sport ; for 
though I only killed four Salmon, weighing 
seventy pounds, I hooked and played, and al- 
most landed several others, of the first class. I 
this day fished as close to the Fall, as we could 
approach with safety ; indeed, more than once 
I thought we were irrecoverably lost ; none but 
such light boats as ours, manned by brave and 
active rowers, could possibly live in the war 
of waves we encountered. 

The force with which this immense body of 
water rushes over a precipice, 150 feet in 
height, may be faintly imagined. Rising thence 



IN NORWAY. 259 

out of an abyss, whose depth is unknown, it is 
tossed violently against a lofty wall of rocks 
that breast the Fall, whence it retreats, seeth- 
ing and foaming, in a thousand eddies ; and 
finally tears and jostles its headlong way, 
through a narrow passage, into a deep and 
quiet pool, named "Karnen's Pool/' from a 
woman who was drowned there long ago. 

Next follows a shallow stream, where spawn- 
ing fish are speared in the Autumn : but few 
lie there at any other season. This short 
stream flows into what I have named the "Boat 
Pool/' (from our boats lying there,) one of the 
most spacious and best on the river, especially 
late in the year. Then comes the " Long 
Eapid /' which may be described as an in- 
clined plane of water, 600 or 800 yards in 
length, and full of huge stones just beneath the 
surface, which by their resistance throw back 
the rushing torrent in so many tumultuous 
waves. It requires the utmost dexterity and 
presence of mind to steer safely through these 



260 TWO SUMMERS 

breakers, any one of which would swamp the 
boat. 

It is but a momentary operation : the boat 
is carefully placed stern foremost at the head 
of the Rapid ; you see a fearful vista of wild 
waves below you ; the frail bark shoots down 
with lightning speed ; in an instant more, the 
glancing waters rise fiercely on either side, as 
if to overwhelm you ; you seem just to elude 
their grasp ; and before you have time to ascer- 
tain whether you are frightened, or not, you 
are safely arrived at the bottom. The narrow 
stream issuing from the Foss Pool, named the 
"Foss Rapid," though shorter is still more 
dangerous : but an accident at either spot 
must necessarily be fatal; and I confess it 
was not until experience had convinced me of 
the dependence I might repose on my boat- 
men, that I learned to encounter either passage 
with perfect equanimity. 

Below the Long Rapid, the Namsen divides 
into two branches ; neither of which afford 



IN NORWAY. 261 

good Angling, except in peculiar states of the 
water. Next follows " Jacob's Pool;" take it 
for all in all, tlie best on this, or any other 
river with which I am acquainted. I never 
knew it to be without fish : and there is ample 
verge and scope enough to play the hugest 
and most violent leviathan from morn till 
dewy eve. 

The river then makes a sudden bend to the 
right : and in the stream under the banks 
that thus bridle its course, good fish may often 
be killed, but they do not stay long there. 
The spacious pool that immediately succeeds 
would appear to the eye one of the best on 
the Namsen : I must say, however, that I 
have never had any sport in it. 

The "Gartland Pool" (where the Namsen 
again resumes nearly its first direction) is 
very variable : occasionally I have not had 
a rise there ; but frequently I have killed 
more fish in it, than in any other for the day. 
This Pool opens into the " Long Reach," a 



262 TWO SUMMERS 

mile's length of comparatively still water, re- 
sembling one of the " Doves/' on the Tweed ; 
but affording little or no chance for the Angler. 

At its termination commences the Fossland 
Water, which for two or three miles presents 
a succession of splendid pools, and rapid 
streams, full of rocks, perilous to the tackle, 
but not dangerous in any other sense. These 
pools cannot always be depended on for sport : 
but they are at most times, the favourite resort 
of the largest fish ; a great proportion of the 
heaviest Salmon, killed on the Namsen, having 
been caught here. 

To this general description of the upper 
part of the River, I need only add that the 
immediate scenery of its banks is of so mag- 
nificently wild a character, as would abundantly 
recompense an enthusiast of the picturesque, 
even if • not a single Salmon frequented its 
pure waters. A mighty and rapid river envi- 
roned by extremely lofty precipices, covered 
with bold pines, must ever be a grand object. 



IN NORWAY. 263 

But the beauties of the Namsen are still 
further increased by the numerous bends it 
makes, and the consequent variety of the pic- 
tures it presents, 

Then, though the dark pines do usually 
dip their boughs into the very waters, occa- 
sionally there are verdant spots cleared of 
wood, where during the hay season troops of 
peasants may be seen cutting and turning the 
scanty grass. No Gaard is within miles ; but 
to each of these woodland glades is attached 
one, or two log-huts, wherein the half green 
hay is stored, to be carried home during the 
winter, as occasion may require. 

These " H6-lade," or hay-barns, as they are 
called, supplied my usual dining and sleeping 
rooms. Soon after midday, my attendants, 
if not myself, were sure to feel very hungry, 
upon which we selected the most convenient 
log-house for our repast and repose : and there 
stretched upon the perfumed hay, in full view 
of a favourite pool, ate our humble fare with 



264 TWO SUMMERS 

a zest unknown to more splendid saloons. 
My meal seldom consisted of any thing but 
cold broiled salmon, and potatoes, with barley 
cakes, and the best butter in the world : yet, 
I never enjoyed better health in my life, or 
felt stronger, lighter, and more active. 

We once tried the experiment of killing 
a lamb : but as we were obliged by the heat 
of the weather, to slaughter it the same day 
it was to be dressed, we found it unmasticably 
tough the first day ; the second it was tainted, 
the third it was totally uneatable. I occa- 
sionally shot a few ducks, and some golden 
plover, which improved my larder ; but rarely 
met with any other game, the first season I 
was at the Namsen ; although it will be seen 
in the sequel that on my subsequent visit to 
these parts, I was much more fortunate in 
that respect. 

I must not, however, entirely forget the 
running commentary on my list of killed and 
lost, which I had commenced ; especially since, 



IN NORWAY. 265 

as I have mentioned, the larger fish had unde- 
niably made their appearance with the flood 
in the last days of July. 

On August 3rd, I fished down to Eossland, 
with the intention of catching some Salmon 
for the poor people there ; as I had heard they 
complained of not coming in for any share of 
the money and food the English stranger was 
dispensing at Fiskum and Mediaa. 

I had a capital day's sport. At the very 
first start, in the Boat Pool, I killed a male 
fish, of twenty-five pounds, the longest and 
fiercest I had yet met with; besides losing 
another of equal size, from the hold giving 
way, just as we were about to gaff him. In the 
Gothland Pool, I landed one of twenty-eight 
pounds : and at the bottom of the " Eagles' 
Pool/' I killed a beautiful Salmon, upwards 
of thirty pounds, which showed me ■ splendid 
sport, being very strong and wild. I also 
caught one of sixteen pounds, and a small 
Grilse on the way; so that the total weight 

VOL. I. N 



266 TWO SUMMERS 

was 104 pounds, and made a very pretty show 
in the boat. 

As we were upon the point of landing, one of 
the boatmen declared he saw "Cobbe/* i. e» 
a Seal; of whom I had before heard vague 
rumours, but conceived it must be a large 
Otter, not thinking that Seals would pursue 
the Salmon forty or fifty miles up a river, 
from the sea. However, I was but too soon 
convinced that at least two or three of these 
enemies of fish and fishermen had followed 
the late shoal of Salmon, and would remain 
as long as they should be undisturbed. 

Upon trying the Fossland Pools, next day, 
where I had every reason to anticipate great 
success, I found them most unaccountably 
void of fish : I only rose four, through the 
entire day, and caught but two small ones, 
of eleven and six pounds. It was evidently, 
therefore, useless to stay at Fossland any 
longer for the present ; although I had found 
my quarters much preferable to those at Fis- 



IN NORWAY. 267 

kum. The wife is active, and anxious to do 
her best ; the husband I believe to mean well, 
but he is slow and stupid, as if perpetually 
half tipsy. This, however, could scarcely be 
the case, as I was unable for love or money to 
procure a bottle of spirits for my Fiskum boat- 
men, in the whole hamlet of Fossland : the 
folk there are wretchedly poor. 

On my return the next day to Fiskum I 
was not more successful : I hooked two large 
fish in the upper Fossland Pool, but they both 
broke the gut near the head of the fly. No 
others did I see for some time. In the Long 
Reach, however, I received a full explanation 
of all my misfortunes : for there I saw in the 
wake of our boat the bull-dog head of an 
enormous Seal, gazing intently at us. I took 
an opportunity when he was not more than 
fifty yards off, to send a charge of duck shot 
into his head and breast : and from the violent 
splashing he made on the top of the water, we 
at first imagined he was killed. However, 
n 2 



268 " TWO SUMMERS 

he soon reappeared for a single second a couple 
of hundred yards below us ; and then as mo- 
mentarily rose and sank, lower and lower down 
the river, as far as we could see ; in such a 
way as quite satisfied us he would not rest 
till he had regained his native ocean. 

On reaching JacoVs Pool, we observed the 
Salmon rising in a very agitated manner, 
which made us suspect the presence of another 
enemy : and it was not long before we per- 
ceived a much smaller Seal in determined 
pursuit of the scared creatures : unfortunately 
I could not get a shot at him. Finally, in 
the Boat Pool, just as we were on the point 
of leaving off, an enormous Salmon dashed 
at the fly, but missed it : and although I tried 
him with every variety of flies, I could not 
persuade him to rise again. And thus, for 
the first time on the Namsen, I was compelled 
to return home without a single fish, either 
for my boatmen, or my own Sunday's dinner. 
Monday 7th, was oppressively sultry: in the 



IN NORWAY. 269 

early morning, and late evening, I caught 
two fine Salmon of twenty-two and eighteen 
pounds, besides rising three smaller. The next 
day, the rain which had so long threatened, 
came down in torrents, and soon flooded the 
river, putting Angling out of the question, as I 
thought, for some days. However, on the 9th, 
the skies cleared so pleasantly, that I was 
induced by two natives who had come a con- 
siderable distance on purpose to see me fish, 
to sally forth late in the afternoon. 

We found the river in high, roaring flood, 
and much discoloured; therefore affording 
little prospect of sport. Nevertheless, to my 
own astonishment, and the infinite delight of 
my Norwegian friends, I hooked three fine Sal- 
mon in the very first pool ;*and after long play 
landed two, of twenty-five and eighteen pounds 
respectively, besides a Grilse. I had just time 
before night, (for the days are shortening with 
melancholy rapidity !) to kill another splendid 
fish of twenty-two pounds, 



270 TWO SUMMERS 

Considering the shortness of the time I 
had been out, and the size of the Salmon I 
killed, I naturally calculated on very great 
success, the following day. Alas ! for sublunary 
hopes ! I began badly : I soon hooked, and 
brought close to land, a Salmon of fifteen 
or sixteen pounds which my attendant gaffed, 
but carelessly let slip off! again I brought 
it to him, and he missed it ! In drawing 
it to him the third time, the poor creature 
managed to break its hold, and wriggle out 
of our reach into the stream, there soon to 
perish. 

In the lower pools, we found, as we had 
expected, "Cobbe" there before us. Having 
learned from fatal experience that either he or 
I must quit the river, I was prepared with my 
gun, and took a fair opportunity of aiming at 
him : the gun missed fire ! This made him 
so shy, that it was some time before I could get 
a long shot at him ; which, however, evidently 
told on his head, and sent him frightened down 



IN NORWAY. 271 

the river, in exactly the same style and at the 
same pace, as the first, no more to trouble us. 
I altogether rose seven good fish, four of which 
appeared well hooked : but my Scotch flies 
broke twice; and although I persevered until 
it was dark, I killed but one salmon, of eighteen 
pounds. A regularly unlucky day. 

The next, however, was worse. It was again 
so intensely hot, that I did not proceed to the 
river until the afternoon ; making sure of find- 
ing a few large salmon in the uppermost pools. 
Not one was to be seen anywhere, except im- 
mediately under the Fall ; where the quantity 
of water rendered it impossible to approach. 
It was evident that the Seal had completely 
scared the Salmon out of all the other places : 
and though I was enabled the next day to 
reach the Foss Pool, at a considerable risk, I 
could not induce a fish to rise in the very 
small portion of it that I could command : and 
thus for the fourth time returned to my quarters 
without a single salmon, 



272 TWO SUMMERS 

I began seriously to meditate a retreat 
Southwards, when another flood came, which 
determined me to wait, and see whether it 
would not bring up fresh fish. During the 
continuance of the rain I went out on the 
14th, and in the shallow streams which I had 
ascertained to afford the only chance during 
a flood, I rose four salmon, but only killed 
one, of sixteen pounds, the others being very 
badly hooked. I this day also caught two 
brown trout of two and three pounds, respec- 
tively; they are almost the only ones of that 
species I have taken in the Namsen, where 
they are rare, from the scarcity of food con- 
tained in rivers that flow over silicious rocks. 

The rain still continued on the 15th; but 
I was not to be detained all day within doors : 
so putting on the largest and gaudiest flies 
my pooket book could supply, I tried one or 
two of the best streams, flooded and foaming 
though they were. In the Namsen one need 
not be discouraged by either the colour or size 



IN NORWAY. 273 

of the water. I rose five salmon, but only 
hooked two ; with one of which, a hook made 
by Evatt broke at the bend, I presume from 
striking against a bone. The other I hooked 
from the land, in a back water by the side of 
" Karnen's Pool a noted spot for large fish 
in times of flood. 

The first jump it made showed me what a 
monster I had hold of: and three quarters of 
an hour of most severe play convinced me of 
its immense strength and activity. At last, 
however, it was compelled to yield ; and proved 
to be the heaviest, as well as much the longest 
fish, I had hitherto caught. It weighed thirty- 
four pounds ; but its length, which was exactly 
three feet eleven inches and a half, was greatly 
disproportioned to its girth. The men declared 
it to be one of the aged females, which no 
longer spawn ; and that if it had been shaped 
like younger fish, it would have exceeded forty 
pounds. 

Too many symptoms of the waning season 
n 3 



274 TWO SUMMERS 

impressed upon me the necessity of soon bid- 
ding adieu to my hyperborean quarters : most 
of the nights were already frosty, and the days 
were very perceptibly shortened. August 16th 
accordingly, I bade adieu to Minimum house, 
with much regret, notwithstanding all its 
discomforts; and fished down to Fossland, 
where I had promised to stay for a couple of 
days. 

On my way, I enjoyed the best day's sport 
that this visit to the Namsen afforded : I rose 
twenty-five fish, of which I killed six, weighing 
together 122 pounds; but played besides se- 
veral others of great size, which eventually 
escaped. I was broken seven or eight times ; 
my flies and tackle having become much the 
worse for the long wear and tear they had suf- 
fered. My next day in the Fossland Pools was 
scarcely inferior : I rose nineteen, and killed 
eight fish, of which four, however, were small 
grilse. The weather was far too hot and bright : 
or I should doubtless have had more success. 



IN NORWAY. 275 

The next day was still hotter ; in addition to 
which, three Englishmen who were staying at 
Gothland, fished the same water. 

However, so great was the abundance of 
large Salmon in this part of the river, that I 
rose fourteen, mostly of first-rate size. Of these 
I landed six ; two of them a kind of diminutive 
Salmon (not grilse) that had lately appeared in 
the Namsen, and which, the boatmen insisted, 
belonged properly to the Bangsund river. Of 
the other four, one weighed nearly thirty-four 
pounds, and another full thirty-seven pounds. 
The latter was the heaviest Salmon I was des- 
tined to kill on this occasion : its length was 
precisely the same as that of the one I caught 
at Fiskum, viz. three feet eleven and a half 
inches : its greatest girth was twenty-seven in- 
ches. It was a male, with an enormous mouth 
and hook : and gave me a good hour's most 
splendid sport in the " Eagles' Pool/' 

These last few days had given me some 
idea of what Salmon fishing may be, on this 



276 TWO SUMMERS 

glorious river. Although the weather was 
extremely unfavourable, there was not a single 
day that I did not hook many fish, considerably 
over thirty pounds : and if I had not been 
either unlucky or inexpert, to the highest de- 
gree, (I dare not say which,) I might have each 
day more than doubled the amount that ap- 
pears on my list. 

At this distance of time, I can hardly con- 
ceive how I tore myself away from a spot where 
such magnificent Angling was to be had. 
However, the next morning I went to Mediaa, 
where I fished for a couple of days ; but found 
that all the large fish had run up from that 
part of the river into the upper pools : so that 
the conclusion of my first introduction to the 
Namsen was far from being so brilliant as 
I could have wished. Moreover, the weather 
seemed to be quite broken up, and suddenly 
became very cold. The Aurora Borealis was 
frequently seen ; the potatoes were frostbit- 
ten in exposed situations; winter, in short, 



IN NORWAY. 277 

threatened soon to approach ; and I had a long 
journey of 1500 miles before me. After a day 
or two's visit, therefore, to the amiable Priest 
at Vserum, I finally bade adieu to the noble 
stream, which I shall never forget ; and re- 
turned by Bangsund, &c, to Trondhjem : 
whence I took the road by Rogstad and Roraas, 
to Christiania. 

It will be seen by the list appended to the 
second volume, that I fished parts of thirty-one 
consecutive days, on the Namsen, excepting 
Sundays : four of these proved blank, owing 
chiefly to the Seals and the weather : but in 
the remaining twenty-seven days, I caught 106 
Salmon, which together weighed 1558 pounds; 
besides twelve white trout, thirty-six pounds. 
Nine of the Salmon weighed thirty pounds and 
upwards ; thirty-three, or nearly one third of 
the whole, weighed twenty pounds and up- 
wards, each. Splendid as this result was for 
a stranger not adequately provided for the 
monsters I had to encounter, the slightest 



278 TWO SUMMERS 

glance at the meagre details I have above 
given, will show what infinitely better sport I 
ought to have had. 

Those details have run to such length, that 
I must defer till my description of a subse- 
quent visit to the Namsen, any observations I 
made in Nummedal, on subjects not imme- 
diately connected with my piscatory pursuits. 
But I cannot help again guarding my reader 
against concluding that I was so absorbed by 
my passion for Angling, as to be inattentive 
to the objects of beauty and interest around 
me. On the contrary, although I made no 
lengthened excursion from the banks of the 
Namsen, I frequently dived into the very 
depths of the primaeval forests, where, if I saw 
but little game, I at least met with scenes 
of surpassing grandeur and loneliness. 

It was my constant habit to mix, and con- 
verse with people of all ranks, as well as 
my imperfect acquaintance with the language 
would permit : and nowhere, I conceive, can 



IN NORWAY. 279 

the primitive character and customs of the 
Norwegians be observed to greater advantage, 
than here. From their position, the natives 
of Nummedal have experienced little inter- 
mixture with others, and therefore live and 
think much as their forefathers did. Generally 
speaking, they are an extraordinarily fine race 
of men both for height and shape : and among 
the females I observed more beauty, than any 
where else in Norway. 

Kindness of manner towards each other, 
and towards strangers; honesty, patience, in- 
dustry, contentment, are qualities they possess 
in an eminent degree. As an instance of their 
honesty, I never saw a door fastened, and sel- 
dom shut, by night or by day : &s a proof of 
their kindness of heart, I never witnessed a 
quarrel among them, except upon one occasion, 
when several expressed great indignation with 
one of their own body, who annoyed me a little 
by attempting to angle before me, (the only 
man who had then acquired any knowledge of 



280 TWO SUMMERS 

fly fishing,) and they threatened to throw him 
and his rod into the water, if he persisted. 

Poor People ! many of them were in a 
wretched state of destitution. In consequence 
of the successive failures of their crops, all 
were compelled to mix powder made of the 
inner rind of the fir tree with their barley 
meal ; and several used nothing else but (( bark 
bread/' a most nauseous and inadequate article 
of food. It was, therefore, a great satisfaction 
to know that the produce of my sport formed a 
really important addition to the wholesome nu- 
triment of the district : for which, as well as 
for the little money I disbursed among them, 
I received grateful thanks, together with the 
expression of strong wishes that I would realize 
my promise of revisiting their Valley; a promise 
I was not loth to make, and still more delighted, 
two years after, to be able to fulfil. 



IN NORWAY. 



281 



CHAPTER VII. 

Return to Christiania — Storthing of 1839 — Norwegian Con- 
stitution — Road to Bergen — Solvsberg — County of Valders 
— Beauty of Scenery — Passage of the Fille Fjeld — Nystuen 
— Good shooting quarters — Mariestuen — Vindhallen — Leir- 
dalsoren — Horse fair — Sogne Fjord — Waterfalls — Hougia- 
ners — Skj olden — Difficult passage over the mountains to Lorn 
— Wild and grand character — Lemmings — Curiosity of the 
Natives — The Clergy — Destitution of the poor — 1 ' Echoing 
Vale" — A Norwegian Farewell. 

On my second visit to the Namsen in 1839, I 
took care to reach Norway, in sufficient time 
to allow of a previous ramble over some of the 
highest mountain chains of the west, which I 
had heard to contain the grandest scenery in 
Northern Europe. By leaving England in the 
very beginning of May, I was enabled to make 
a considerable tour in Sweden, and yet arrive 
at Christiania by the first days of June. My 
stay there was, as before, rendered extremely 



282 TWO SUMMERS 

agreeable, as well as instructive, by the dis- 
tinguished hospitality of the Stadholder, and 
also of several of my friends among the Pro- 
fessors, and Merchants. 

I considered myself very fortunate in being 
at the capital during the sitting of the Stor- 
thing, or Norwegian Parliament. Its mode of 
election, constitution, and method of transact- 
ing business, have been so fully described, that 
I need not enter into these subjects. It is 
well known that it meets every third year, on 
the first of February : and it continues sitting 
as long as there is business of importance 
before it. This year the sittings lasted more 
than six months, to the great inconvenience of 
many of the members : and if the country con- 
tinue to advance in wealth, and civilization, 
there can be no doubt that the business of the 
nation will accumulate at such a ratio as to 
preclude the possibility of its being satisfac- 
torily transacted with the present machinery. 

It is a great bar to improvements of every 



IN NORWAY. 283 

kind that they are subjected to this triennial 
delay : for, as little power as possible being 
intrusted to the executive by the Constitution, 
the Storthing appropriates to itself the con- 
sideration of all matters, from almost the very 
highest affairs, to the minutest details. It is 
moreover sensitively jealous of the slightest 
encroachment on what it claims as its prero- 
gatives : and therefore none dare incur the 
responsibility of any manifestly good measure, 
unauthorized by the national council: for in 
Norway, responsibility is not a mere word, or 
empty threat, but a fact of daily enforcement, 
even where the best intentions can be proved. 
The great objection to the more frequent 
assembling of the Storthing is the immense dis- 
tance that many of the members are obliged to 
travel; and the consequent length of time taken 
up by the journey : the improvement of the 
roads, together with the establishment of Steam 
Boats, will probably diminish this objection. 
The Storthing of 1839 consisted of ninety- 



284 TWO SUMMERS 

six members, of whom about one fourth were 
Priests, as many Bonder, or Peasant Proprie- 
tors; and the remaining half, Merchants, or 
Military and Civil officers. The independent 
country gentleman is a character unknown in 
Norway : and the official Members of the Go- 
vernment are jealously excluded; one neces- 
sary consequence of which is, always consider- 
able delay, and not unfrequently mistakes, 
from there being no one on the spot capable 
of giving official information. The Bonder are 
usually shrewd, intelligent men within their 
own sphere, but of course unequal to take an 
enlarged view of state politics. They noto- 
riously resist, as far as they can, all expenditure 
of public money; and where two sums are 
proposed, invariably, vote for the lowest, with a 
spirit that would delight Mr. Hume. They 
are respectable in their demeanour, and in 
their dress, which is the usual holiday suit of 
their respective districts; but are easily dis- 
tinguishable from the rest. 



IN NORWAY. 285 

Each Member of the Storthing receives three 
dollars a day, besides his travelling expenses : 
and as the Bonder do not spend on an average 
more than one fifth of this sum, they are en- 
abled after a long session to lay by a pretty 
little capital, which, I fear, makes it too much 
a pecuniary object with them to acquire a seat 
in Parliament. The house meets at nine in 
the morning, and continues sitting till two p. m. 
when the members all dine : besides which 
committees sit in the evening from four p.m. 
till eight, or nine o' clock, according to the 
work before them. 

There is a commodious gallery for strangers ; 
and not even a door-keeper to prevent any one 
whatever from entering to hear the debates, 
which I frequently did. They appeared to be 
conducted in a simple, straightforward, busi- 
ness-like manner; in fact, very much in the 
same way as the private business of our House of 
Commons is transacted, in the early part of the 
evening, before the party questions come on. 



286 TWO SUMMERS 

I never witnessed anything like a speech for the 
newspapers, or to excite the applause of their 
party: their observations were sensible and to 
the point, and seemed to be exclusively directed 
to the Speaker, who evidently occupies a more 
important position, than with us. The Presi- 
dent this year was a Priest, named Rittervold, 
whose face and air gave indication of the 
superior intelligence he is acknowledged to 
possess. 

On the whole, the Constitution of 1814 has 
answered at least as well as could be antici- 
pated, during a quarter of a century of unin- 
terrupted tranquillity. But even its most 
ardent admirers (and they are many and 
zealous) confess that it is susceptible of im- 
provement : while those best acquainted with 
it and the position of the country, seem 
universally to feel that it is not equal to the 
momentous emergencies that another twenty- 
five years may bring forth; nor even to that 
full developement of the domestic and external 



IN NORWAY, 287 

relations of Norway, wliicli its rapid advance 
in population and civilization may be expected 
to require. However, so general is the fear 
lest, if the door be once opened for the cor- 
rection of defects, the opportunity be taken 
to abrogate the valuable parts of the Consti- 
tution, that nothing but a strong conviction 
of necessity will ever induce the great mass 
of the Norwegians to consent to any alteration 
whatever. 

June commenced with a succession of such 
glorious weather, that I felt emboldened to 
attack the Mountains of the West, as soon as 
my necessary preparations were completed. 
Accordingly, early on the morning of the 13th, 
I set out through Ringeriget, for the Fille 
Fjeld, on the road to Bergen. 

Having acquired a tolerable smattering of 
the language, since my last visit to Norway, 
I could dispense with an Interpreter; and, 
therefore preferred taking a man whom I met 
with at the Hotel du Nord, although he spoke 



288 TWO SUMMERS 

nothing but Norsk. His name was Peder 
Arnoodsen ; and he proved a very useful, 
honest, and obliging domestic. I had an 
excellent Carriole for myself: Peder travelled 
in a sort of tax cart I had brought from Swe- 
den : the heavier luggage was despatched, with 
the Forbud, in a peasant's cart. 

The first day's journey brought us to Klek- 
kan, by the route I have already described : 
but the splendid prospect over Bingeriget, 
from the Krogkleven, seen as it was under the 
most favourable accidents of weather, lost none 
of its enchantment from having been pre- 
viously enjoyed. Let the Tourist remember, 
that much the finest view is obtained from 
the higher point on the left hand side of the 
road as he comes from Christiania ; that from 
the lower platform, on the right hand, though 
easier of access, is every way inferior. 

The second day's journey passed chiefly 
along the Randes Fjord, a Lake fifty or sixty 
miles in length. It is a fine sheet of water, 



IN NORWAY. 289 

particularly towards its Northern end, where 
its features assume considerable boldness : but 
to my taste this is not sufficient to atone for 
the absence of that softness and beauty, that 
characterise Lake Mjosen, with which it runs 
nearly parallel. Randes Fjord is. too narrow, 
both for its length, and the scale of the sur- 
rounding scenery; neither is it sufficiently 
indented with winding bays. 

At Gran I stopped a few hours, in order to 
visit the neighbouring mountain of Solvsberg, 
mentioned by Keilhau as one of the best 
examples he knows of his favourite passage of 
rocks into each other. I examined it with the 
greatest attention on the North Eastern side, 
where there is an excellent section: but, I must 
confess, I could observe nothing to favour his 
peculiar theory. 

The chief rock is a schist, passing from a 
soft friable shale at the Southern end, into a 
hard slate at the Northern extremity. This 
latter partly abuts against, and is partly super- 

vol. i. o 



290 TWO SUMMERS 

imposed upon, a vast mass of coarse syenitic 
grit, which shows every appearance of having 
been violently protruded from beneath; foras- 
much as the previously horizontal strata of the 
schist are there most distinctly heaved up into 
a nearly vertical position, and, besides being 
indurated, are full of egg shaped vesicles. In- 
stead therefore of finding in Solvsberg an 
undeniable disproof of all Volcanic theories, I 
could only view it as a striking instance of their 
confirmation. 

Close to the next station, Ougedal, is a pretty 
little stream, which is said to abound with 
trout : not having heard of this in time, I could 
not give it a trial. Hence to Thomlevolden, is 
fine mountain scenery, of the second class ; 
enjoyed at the expense of ascending an abun- 
dance of steep hills, in consequence of the bad 
line of road usually adopted. At Thomlevolden 
is a very fair inn, kept by a respectable, cleanly 
Widow ; with whom I left the heavier portion 
of my baggage, it being very certain that the 



IN NORWAY. 291 

carriages at least must return to this point, in 
order to cross over the hills to the shores of 
the Mjosen ; while it was very doubtful whether 
we should not all be compelled to turn back, 
without accomplishing the passage of the Fille 
Fjeld, at this early season. 

I tried the adjoining river for an hour or 
two after breakfast ; but though the water was 
clear, it was as cold as ice, and I saw only 
one or two very small trout rise. I afterwards 
on my journey observed a succession of Rapids, 
two or three miles above Thomlevolden, which 
looked extremely favourable to the troll: and 
I was assured there are large trout there, later 
in the season. 

The upper part of this Valley presents many 
scenes of wild beauty: but at Brufladt we 
left it, and crossed a chain of mountains into 
the Valley of the Beina. The ascent was the 
longest and steepest, I had hitherto encoun- 
tered in Norway : I almost despaired that the 
ponies would drag even our light vehicles up 
o 2 



292 TWO SUMMERS 

to the top, with, all the assistance that our own 
shoulders could give them. 

When at last we did reach the summit, we 
were rewarded with a very magnificent pano- 
rama, extending over the deep Vale of the 
Beina and its Lakes, up to the Alpine ranges, 
bordering on the Fille Fjeld, covered with deep 
snow. While greatly admiring this view of 
the outskirt of the loftiest mountain district in 
Norway, I could not help feeling considerably 
alarmed as to the feasibility of traversing it : 
it seemed still clothed in all the rigours of 
winter. • 

I slept at Reien, where I remained two 
nights, according to my invariable rule of not 
travelling on the Sabbath. I could scarcely 
have chosen a more uncomfortable resting- 
place. I had long been accustomed, if not 
reconciled, to extreme poverty of food : but 
the dirt of every thing, and the intrusive 
curiosity of every body around me, were quite 
insufferable. The inhabitants of this County 



IN NORWAY. 293 

of Valders, in the centre of which Reien is 
situated, are the most uncouth in their man- 
ners, dress, appearance, and language, and 
withal the filthiest, I have met with in Nor- 
way : there may be still worse specimens of 
humanity in this country, but they have not 
greeted my eye. 

I must not, however, conceal that the dis- 
trict these filthy creatures inhabit, is one of 
the most picturesque even in this land of the 
mountain and the flood. The lower part of 
the Valley is well cultivated, and abounds 
with good sized Gaards : but as it approaches 
the range of the Fille Fjeld, it assumes an 
air of wild majesty very superior to any thing 
seen on the Southern approach to the Dovre 
Fjeld. In fact, instead of one continuous 
Valley, the road from Reien to Skougstad 
traverses a succession of deep and romantic 
Glens, enclosed by lofty rocks ; any one of 
which forms quite a splendid picture. 

The Valley of Oiloe struck me as inexpressi- 



294 TWO SUMMERS 

bly grand : but a short way beyond, a scene 
of still greater grandeur and wildness succeeds. 
The bottom of this secluded Vale is nearly 
occupied by a dark, still Lake, along whose 
margin the road is in general carried. Some- 
times, however, it scales the steep, broad sides 
of projecting rocks, on whose hard, smooth 
surface it has marked but a slight track ; while 
it is totally unprotected by any barrier from 
the precipices that sink sheer into the black 
waters beneath. Towering far above the crags 
and chasms that immediately environ this 
Lesser Mjosen (as the Lake is named) are 
seen, high overhead, naked cliffs of the boldest 
outline, frowning down upon the savage scene, 
which in some degree reminded me of Wast- 
water, infinitely magnified, and extended, and 
beautified. At the upper end of the Lake 
stands the church of 6ye; close by which, 
an ample torrent from a mountain glen bounds 
exultingly over a series of rocky ledges, into 
its tranquil bosom. 



IN NORWAY. 295 

I felt I was already repaid for the trouble 
of my journey by such spectacles of Nature's 
sterner beauties ; even if after all I should 
be compelled by the state of the road to retrace 
my steps. We soon after reached Skougstad, 
a miserable Station-house, at the foot of the 
real ascent of the Fille Fjeld : from which 
point horses must be taken to Haeg, on the 
Western side of the Pass : there being no 
intermediate place where they can be procured, 
as it is all wild mountain, unfit for the habi- 
tation of man, or beast. 

This stage is paid for as five and a half Nor- 
wegian miles, or about forty English: the actual 
distance I should suppose to be two thirds of 
that charged ; but it is so laborious, as well as 
long, that the extra payment is amply deserved. 
When I saw the half starved ponies that were 
offered to drag us over this severe stage, my 
previous apprehensions of its practicability 
were reduced almost to certainty. Never- 
theless, so far were their masters from sharing 



296 TWO SUMMERS 

our fears, that they eventually offered to take 
us with the same horses, all the way to Leir- 
dalsdren, more than twice the distance; and 
which we accepted, and safely accomplished, 
by allowing them plenty of time, and assisting 
them up all the hills, and down most of them. 

The ascent commences immediately from 
Skougstad, and continues, with few interrup- 
tions, to Nystuen, But though long, and 
occasionally stiff, it nowhere was so steep as 
I had been led to expect. We very soon 
reached the regions of winter : not only were 
the heights above us and around us univer- 
sally cased in snow; but it even still lay on 
the road, for considerable distances. This 
required some care on the part of the drivers, 
and occasioned the poor animals much toil, 
but there was nothing that could be consi- 
dered in the least dangerous. The scenery on 
this Eastern side of the Pille Fjeld is greatly 
inferior to that of the Western descent in 
grandeur and sublimity. 



IN NORWAY. 297 

In less than three hours we easily reached 
Nystuen, where I purposed sleeping: it is a 
mountain quarter, built and maintained upon 
the same plan as J erkin, with which it lies very 
nearly on the same level, 4500 feet above the 
sea. It has, however, a much more dreary and 
desolate look, as instead of the green pastures 
and scattered pines that are seen on the Dovre 
Fjeld, snow still, on the 20th June, covered 
nearly the whole surface, except where the bare 
rock protruded through its icy mantle. 

I was forcibly reminded of the Spital on the 
Grimsel, in Switzerland : and to complete the 
resemblance, the hollow, in which Nystuen is 
built, contains a small Lake, abounding, I was 
assured, with excellent trout : at this season a 
small portion of it only was clear, close by the 
Inn, the rest being filled with half melted ice. 
If such be its aspect at Midsummer, what a 
dreary spot for a residence during the whole 
twelvemonth ! Yet another fortnight of such 
lovely weather as we were then enjoying, will 
o 3 



298 TWO SUMMERS 

doubtless much, change the scene, and deck it 
with a little verdure for six or seven weeks, 
which is the utmost period that these moun- 
taineers can be said to possess any summer. 
Most fortunately for us, the weather was not 
only fine, but perfectly calm : had there been 
wind, it would have been insupportably cold. 

I heard very tempting accounts of the 
numbers of Reindeer, Bears, and Ptarmigan, 
in the surrounding mountains; and have no 
doubt that, a little later in the season, Ny- 
stuen is one of the best Stations in Norway 
for the sportsman, ambitious of slaying such 
game. I know of no other situation where so 
good quarters can be obtained, so near to the 
Reindeer's feeding ground: a mountain pony 
can be taken up to the very point where a shot 
at these rare animals may be expected. Wild 
as is the position of Nystuen, the people who 
keep it (of the name of Knudsen) are not only 
civil and obliging, but more intelligent than 
usual as to a traveller's requirements. 



IN NORWAY. 299 

When we started at six o' clock the next 
morning, thin veils of mist partially concealed 
the higher ranges : but in less than an hour, 
the powerful sun had entirely obliterated all 
trace of vapours, and we reached the highest 
point of the passage, four or five miles beyond 
Nystuen, in the most heavenly weather imagin- 
able. And a glorious spectacle broke upon our 
view ! This part of the road is not confined 
within narrow walls of rock, but traverses an 
open, undulating tract of great elevation, 
where a few stunted willows and dwarf birch 
were seen struggling from beneath the patches 
of snow, and every hollow was gorged with 
torrents hurrying away the rapidly melting 
waters. 

But if the immediate scenery was compara- 
tively tame, we commanded an amphitheatre of 
the loftiest mountains in Northern Europe. 
Among these snow-clad masses, the singularly 
broken and pointed crags of the Hurungame 
Fj elder were very conspicuous, far away to 



300 TWO SUMMERS 

the right ; towering above a crowd of nameless 
Alps belonging to the Jotun and Fille Fjeld 
ranges. The highest point of the Hurungarne 
is now ascertained to exceed Sneehsettan by 
a few feet, and therefore to be the loftiest 
ground in the North : I conld not obtain its 
exact height from any competent authority, but 
I know that it is very little under 8000 feet. 

We passed close to the isolated peak of the 
Suul Tind, a picturesque mountain, notorious 
for being the favourite resort of Reindeer and 
Bears ; of which we had ocular demonstration, 
seeing in the snow by the roadside the tracks 
of two of the latter (probably a mother and her 
cub) which had crossed the road only the day 
before : and a little further we observed rather 
older tracks of three Reindeer, coming from 
the same direction. 

Subsequently in the course of the day, we 
met two chasseurs, on their way to this shoot- 
ing ground, to whom we communicated our 
intelligence. They were primitively equipped, 



IN NORWAY. 301 

with a wallet, made of undressed reindeer skin, 
at their backs, a pair of Skidors, six feet long, 
for running over the frozen snow, in their 
hands, and a curious piece of artillery, consist- 
ing of an enormous rusty barrel attached to a 
little fir handle (for it would be absurd to call 
it a stock) slung behind : the huge lock baffles 
description. They had, however, killed a Bear 
and two Reindeer, during the preceding week ; 
though they allowed the Deer were as yet too 
poor to be worth killing for their flesh. 

There was by no means so much snow on 
this side, as on the Eastern ; and the descent 
to Mariestuen, though long and rapid, was 
not difficult or dangerous, with our light car- 
rioles and active ponies. Mariestuen is a poor 
cabin in a deep, romantic glen at the foot of 
the highest range of the Fille Fjeld. After 
resting here an hour or two, we pursued our 
way down a fine mountain gorge, to Hseg, 
where we again baited our horses. The whole 
of the road was distinguished by much pic- 



802 TWO SUMMERS 

turesque grandeur ; but it was so greatly ex- 
ceeded by the next stage from Haeg to Lysne, 
that its impressions, however vivid at the time, 
were comparatively effaced by the superior 
effect of what we subsequently saw. 

These last twenty miles present scenery the 
most worthy of the fame of Norway, of any I 
had hitherto met with. They pass through 
a tortuous valley, generally so narrow and deep, 
that it may be considered a gigantic fissure 
in these enormous mountain masses. The wild 
cliffs, that immediately enclose it, are univer- 
sally steep and broken, frequently quite per- 
pendicular; and vary from 1000 to 3000 feet 
in height. Over their precipitous sides, a 
thousand streams, fed at this season by the 
melting glaciers, cast themselves headlong, 
and are dissipated into vapour, ere they reach 
the bottom. At other points the rocky wall 
has been violently rent asunder, and there 
still larger floods, half cataract, half cascade, 
rush down the ravines on either hand, to swell 



IN NORWAY. 303 

the main torrent, whose course the road 
follows. 

The character of this mountain river very 
clearly shows that we are, on the whole, de- 
cending with great rapidity : at the same time, 
such is the difficult nature of the ground, that 
the road must often climb the steep sides of 
bare rocks, as well as descend many a rugged 
slope, at a fearful angle, with no protection 
whatever between the narrow track, and the 
swollen flood that roars, and foams, and rushes 
with resistless might down its rocky bed, far, 
far beneath. Sometimes the torrent is crossed 
by picturesque wooden bridges, of most peril- 
ous architecture, that come well into the 
landscape : and at each turn of the winding 
glen, are seen the snow-capped summits of 
numerous mountains, that from the blue vault 
of heaven look down upon the horrors of this 
wild defile. The height of many of them is 
little short of 5000 feet. 

It would be impossible to particularize every 



304 TWO SUMMERS 

spot where these elements of grandeur and sub- 
limity are developed ; but I must not omit all 
mention of the famous pass of Vindhallen, in- 
comparably the most precipitous descent I have 
ever accomplished in a carriage. The road 
here winds down the face of a nearly perpen- 
dicular chasm, which would seem to bid de- 
fiance to the most adventurous engineer's skill: 
and certainly on coming to the verge of it I 
almost doubted the wisdom of attempting the 
risk. We had no dragchain ; and the ponies 
being unprovided with backstraps, could only 
hold the carriage back from the collar. The 
men, however, being well acquainted with the 
spot, at once proceeded to lock the wheels in a 
novel, but very effectual mode, by inserting 
stout birch poles between the spokes, so as 
totally to prevent their turning round. And 
then, by applying our united strength to each 
carriole in turn, and holding it back, we ar- 
rived at the bottom in perfect safety, and with 
no further damage than the fracture of a few 



IN NORWAY. 305 

straps, in consequence of the usual badness of 
Norwegian leather. Our good little animals 
seconded us with might and main ; but from 
the insufficiency of their harness, so ill adapted 
to a mountainous country, laboured under 
great disadvantage. 

Not to weary the reader longer with my im- 
perfect description of this magnificent moun- 
tain pass (which I esteem the finest of its class 
in Europe, superior even to the Via Mala) we 
at length descended into a broad level Vale, 
strewed with a thick bed of finely comminuted 
gravel, derived from the wasting of the Gneiss, 
and Slate rocks. The beautiful verdure of this 
plain, thickly studded as it is with Gaards, was 
at first quite startling after having been so 
long immured among bare rocks, and dazzling 
snow, untenanted by man. This rich Vale 
debouches upon an arm of the great Sogne 
Fjord, at Leirdalsoren, a small village con- 
sisting of Fishermen's Cabins, singularly hud- 
dled together, with two or three better houses : 



306 TWO SUMMERS 

of these tlie Skydskaffer's is one of the best : 
and its accommodations were in all respects 
commendable. 

The heat in the confined valley we had tra- 
versed during so many hours, had been into- 
lerable ; and our labour at the innumerable 
ascents and descents, excessive. Moreover, for 
the last three days I had tasted nothing better 
than Smorre Brod (barley cakes, and butter) 
and potatoes; I was therefore not sorry to 
demolish a nicely dressed Ptarmigan, without 
stopping to consider the enormity of shooting 
them at this season. Immediately after which 
operation I adjourned to bed, where I slept 
through all sorts of noises, until far into the 
following morning. 

There happened to be a horse fair at Leirdal, 
which had collected 400 or 500 of the ponies of 
this mountainous district, and at least as many 
purchasers or sellers. Both bipeds and qua- 
drupeds afforded me much amusement : it was 
difficult to say which were the wildest in their 



IN NORWAY. 307 

appearance, or the most shaggy in their hair. 
However, while the men were remarkably tall 
and strong, their ponies were the most dimi- 
nutive and high-boned of their race : I had at 
any rate had a good opportunity of estimating 
their powers of endurance, in crossing the Fille 
Fjeld; and knew how to appreciate their bot- 
tom. It would have greatly amused a York- 
shire Jockey to see these huge fellows riding 
their deer-like animals to sell, with bare backs, 
and string bridles : the prices seemed to range 
from 31. to 61. 

In the afternoon, I walked a couple of miles 
up the river, for the purpose of trying one or 
two likely spots for a Salmon; although I was 
aware that very few had yet appeared in the 
River. I was quite unsuccessful; but I saw 
enough to convince me there never can be 
good Angling here, as the bed is too shallow, 
and the stream too rapid, for Salmon to remain 
long in any of the lower pools. 

It was an object of great importance to me 



308 TWO SUMMERS 

to obtain every information I could as to the 
practicability of effecting my way from the 
head of the Fjord, over the mountains to Lorn. 
The carriages, I knew, must return all the 
way back to Thomlevolden : but I wished, if 
possible, to avoid this long circuit for myself, 
as well as to have the opportunity which this 
elevated pass would afford me, of becoming 
better acquainted with the recesses of the 
Norwegian Alps. 

I met with every disposition to give me any 
information in their power : but, alas ! there 
was no one who had travelled half so much 
through his own country, as I had ; and their 
conjectures as to whether I could, or could not 
pass, were most puzzlingly contrarious. I 
was consequently obliged to trust to the slight 
information I had picked up at Christiania, 
and to a determination not to be beaten back 
by a trifling obstacle. 

There are plenty of good boats and boatmen 
to be hired at Leirdalsoren, it being the point 



IN NORWAY. 309 

of embarkation on the high road to Bergen. 
I easily secured through the Post-master, 
a light built, roomy boat, with three rowers, 
to take me to Skj olden at the extreme head 
of the Sogne Fjord, a distance of thirty-five 
English miles. Each man pulls a pair of 
v^ry light oars ; and in ordinary weather they 
usually accomplish a Norwegian mile, or seven 
English, in a couple of hours. A young woman 
begged a passage to some place on the Fjord ; 
to which the men readily consented, but made 
her pull an oar the whole way, as a matter of 
course. 

Having then seen Peder start with the car- 
riages on his return over the Fille Fjeld, with 
orders to rejoin me in Gulbrandsdalen, in case 
I should be able to accomplish the passage 
across the Sogne Fjeld, I embarked alone on 
what I could not but consider an adventurous 
expedition. It was the height of midsummer ; 
the weather exquisitely beautiful; and the 
scenery calculated in the highest degree to 



310 TWO SUMMERS 

interest by its novelty/ and to charm by its 
grandeur. 

I have before attempted to give a general 
idea of these Fjords of the Western coast, 
which stamp so very distinctive a character 
on the scenery of Norway. The Sogne Fjord 
is one of the longest of these mysterious arms 
that wind deep into the land from their parent 
sea, substituting their still, blue waters for the 
verdant plain that would in other countries 
occupy these mountain Vallies : and though 
not considered equal in sublimity to Hardan- 
ger Fjord, its features are highly impressive 
and picturesque. 

The comparatively narrow arm on which 
Leirdalsoren is built soon swelled out into a 
spacious basin, which again branched into 
lesser Fjords. Enormous masses of Gneiss 
swept down to the water's edge, with a steep- 
ness that scarcely allowed the hardy Scotch 
fir to fix its roots in their crevices : the Spruce, 
for some inexplicable reason, does not grow 



IN NORWAY. 311 

in this district. High above these gigantic 
rocks, numerous isolated mountains rose to a 
height of between 5000 and 6000 feet ; and 
in this latitude were mantled with brilliant 
snow far down their steep flanks. 

The impassable character of the rocky pre- 
cipices, that occupy the shores, no less than 
, the niggard scantiness of the soil, would seem 
to secure such wild solitudes for Nature's own. 
Yet even here, man, "audax omnia perpeti," 
has established a precarious footing. His 
lowly cabin is seen nestled beneath an over- 
hanging crag; a rood or two of verdure, that 
mark his barley and potatoe crop, show that 
he does not entirely trust to the neighbouring 
Fjord for his subsistence. But how lonely 
is his situation ! without a fellow being within 
miles, and without the power of advancing 
a few hundred yards from his dwelling, except 
in a boat ! And how diminutive, how unutter- 
ably insignificant, seems every monument of 
his labours amid the stupendous glories of 



812 TWO SUMMERS 

creation by which lie is encompassed ! Towards 
the upper end of the Fjord, the mountains 
that hem it in, become still loftier, and more 
savage. They are further characterised by an 
incalculable number of cascades, that from 
their abundance and height, no less than from 
their peculiar forms, constitute a novel feature 
in the landscape. Most of them form a series 
of alternate falls and cataracts from the very 
summit of the dark cliffs, many of which 
cannot be less than 2000 or 3000 feet high. 
They are of all magnitudes, from the size of 
a considerable river, down to that of a mere 
rill which serpentines in threads of silver over 
the ebon walls of the Slate rock. In no 
fortnight of my life, have I seen so many or 
so fine cascades, as on this single day. 

The most considerable, and most celebrated 
Fall is that at Feigum, where I landed, for the 
purpose of seeing it to advantage. At this 
point, a very large stream shoots over an open 
wall of rock, in one sheer fall, which has been 



IN NORWAY. 313 

ascertained by Professor Naumann to be 657 
feet : so immense is the scale of the surround- 
ing panorama that I should not have estimated 
it at more than 400 feet. 

A very respectable old Bonder lives here, 
whom I was desirous to see ; but unfortunately 
he was from home. He is a distinguished 
member of the sect of Hougianers, so named 
from one Nillson, of Houga, in Smaalehnenes 
Amt, who about the close of the last century, 
collected a few followers that, like himself, re- 
quired a more spiritual worship, than the mini- 
strations of their church afforded. They pro- 
fess still to adhere to the established Lutheran 
Religion; but have readers and prayer meetings 
at their own houses. They seem to be a scat- 
tered, and not an increasing body ; in many 
respects resembling our own Methodists, only 
that, unlike them, they are said to ascribe to 
works an undue superiority over faith. 

Without alluding to the causes deeply seated 
in human nature, which induce dissent to any 

vol. r. p 



314 TWO SUMMERS 

Religion whatever, or to the peculiar causes 
that may affect the Lutheran Faith in parti- 
cular, it is by no means wonderful that in a 
country where the Parishes are so inordinately 
large, and the communications so impracticable, 
piously disposed minds should seek to supply, as 
best they may, the necessarily unfrequent ser- 
vices of their own Ministers, 

About eight or ten miles further we reached 
Skj olden, where I was surprised to find a tole- 
rably sized village, having the look of a minia- 
ture sea-port, though at a distance of consi- 
derably more than 100 miles from the open 
sea. It is situated at the confluence of two 
streams, that at this season are swollen to 
overflowing, from the numerous glaciers, which 
I could see thickly covered all the neighbouring 
heights. Salmon frequent them both : but their 
turbid appearance put all idea of Angling out 
of the question. 

I was much more interested as to the prac- 
ticability of my intended route over the moun- 



IN NORWAY. 315 

tains, respecting which the aspect of the coun- 
try gave me apprehensions that the intelligence 
I could obtain at Skj olden was by no means 
calculated to allay. At any rate I ascertained 
that I must proceed four miles further, to 
the village of Fortun, as being the only place 
where horses and guides to cross the moun- 
tains could be obtained. Thither accordingly 
I rode, through a valley of the wildest de- 
scription, where the rocks were even more 
precipitous, and the cascades even more nu- 
merous, than what I had seen in the early 
part of the day. 

I soon collected round me a crowd of won- 
dering natives, who assured me that before 
" St. Hans dag" (St. John's day, a great epoch 
always in Norway) it was barely possible for 
horses to cross; that indeed two horses had 
arrived a few days previously, from the other 
side, but without any load ; and the snow was 
reported to be so deep, and over so great an 
extent, that no one liked to encounter the 



316 ' TWO SUMMERS 

journey. For a long time in vain I used all 
my rhetoric : and I was on the point of riding 
a couple of miles up the glen to a professed 
Wegviser, or Guide of the mountain, when 
two men came forward and offered to do their 
best to accomplish my objects, though they at 
the same time expressed their fears that we 
should be obliged to turn back. I was so 
pleased with their appearance, that I at once 
accepted their offer, without either party 
making any stipulation as to remuneration. 

It will be seen by the map, that there is 
another path from the Sogne Fjord, into Guld- 
bransdal, through the valley of Justedal, which 
is noted for containing the finest specimens 
of the true Glacier, existing in Norway. How- 
ever, as I knew that they were immeasurably 
inferior to those of Switzerland, and besides 
that the road was much longer and more 
difficult, I preferred to attempt that over the 
Sogne Fjeld, from Fortun to Lorn, which I 
was aware passed close to the Jotun Fjeld, 



IN NORWAY. 317 

(or Giant Mountains) already mentioned as 
being the highest in Scandinavia. 

The distance from Skj olden to Lorn is rec- 
koned eight Norwegian, or about fifty-six En- 
glish miles : of which thirty-five are between 
the last Gaard and the first S setter, while 
upwards of twenty extend over the true Snow 
Fjeld. After my guides had made the ne- 
cessary preparations, we set out about eleven 
o' clock at night, which was considered the 
best hour in order that we might traverse as 
much as possible of the snow during the 
early morning hours, when it is of course the 
hardest. I had a horse to ride, besides one 
for my baggage ; but such were the difficulties 
of the road that I could make very little use 
of it. 

Immediately on quitting Fortun, we scaled 
a nearly perpendicular wall of Slate rock ; and 
next entered a steep, narrow glen, down which 
a snow-fed torrent roared in an uninterrupted 
succession of fine wild cascades. At the top of 



318 TWO SUMMERS 

this gorge, about seven miles from Fortun, we 
stopped for an hour at some Ssetters, not yet 
occupied, to rest our steeds before assailing the 
real Fjeld. 

It was midnight ; but not such midnight as 
is known in Southern climes. Close before ufc, 
divided but by a narrow chasm, stood the 
naked peaks of the Hurungarne, Skagstoletinde, 
and other members of the Jotun Fjeld, which 
is not only the highest, but by far the most 
picturesque mountain range I have seen in 
Norway. Its broken summits rise in many a 
fantastic shape from an extensive field of frozen 
snow, round which they are happily grouped : 
the views over them during our ascent were 
splendid in the extreme ; and never were they 
enjoyed in more magnificent weather. 

We rested till the sun's earliest rays had 
shed a rosy blush upon the loftiest pinnacles of 
the " Giant Mountains/' when with good hearts 
we resumed our upward march. The ascent 
from this point was long, and occasionally stiff ; 



I 



IN NORWAY. 319 

but never in the least perilous. Soon, however, 
we reached the snow, at first in patches, then 
in continuous fields of undulating hill and val- 
ley: for the most part its surface was hard 
enough to bear us, though occasionally the 
poor beasts sank floundering up to their bellies. 
For at least a dozen miles we traversed this 
frozen plain, embosomed in mountains belong- 
ing to the Sogne and Lange Fjelder, which 
seemed to rise some 2,000 feet above our path. 
These heights were, without exception, covered 
from their summits with a deep mass of dazzling 
snow, that frequently terminated in Glaciers of 
second rate Swiss character : many of them, I 
doubt not, I had seen from Rundene. 

Ever and anon, an island of rock, protruding 
from out the wintry expanse, afforded a scanty 
and coarse herbage to our famished animals, 
for whom, to my surprise, their masters had 
brought no provender whatever. On one of 
these insulated spots we rested for an hour or 
two : and wet and unprotected as we were, 



320 TWO SUMMERS 

with a bitter cold wind sweeping over the Pass, 
and freezing our very garments upon us, we 
could not resist the temptation to snatch a 
broken slumber on the hard cold rock. 

It had a singular effect, in the midst of this 
frost-bound solitude, to come suddenly upon a 
party from Guldbrandsdal, who like ourselves 
had been travelling the whole night : they 
seemed dreadfully fatigued, as we perhaps ap- 
peared to them. The only other living object 
we saw, except a few Ptarmigan, was that sin- 
gular little animal, the Lemming. It is of a 
reddish-brown colour, softening into white on 
the belly, and prettily marked with black on 
the back : it belongs to the Rat tribe, but in 
appearance resembles much more a small 
Guinea pig. I had first seen them on the Fille 
Pjeld in considerable numbers; but here they 
were in myriads, squeaking shrilly as we passed, 
and scampering into their holes as fast as their 
short legs would allow them. 

The sun had now acquired such power that 



IN NORWAY. 321 

the snow became very soft, occasioning great 
labour to ourselves and horses.' Moreover, it 
seemed much worse on the Northern than on 
the Southern side : so much so, that we were 
two or three times almost compelled to turn 
back. The men displayed excellent courage, 
perseverance, and good humour, three most 
essential qualities on an expedition like this : 
and they were eventually rewarded by success- 
fully surmounting all our difficulties. 

During the latter part of our passage, I 
had suffered more from the dazzling reflection 
of the snow in my eyes, than from fatigue : 
and oh ! how refreshing, how delicious ap- 
peared the scanty verdure in the first valley we 
reached, after more than twelve hours spent 
upon the Glacier ! We found here a S setter, 
at which the folk had recently arrived, and 
with true mountain hospitality, offered us, all 
they had to give, milk, butter, and fire : 
whereof I instantly availed myself to boil in 
my kettle a decoction of tea, the first refresh- 
p3 



322 TWO SUMMERS 

ment, not absolutely frozen, that had passed 
my lips since leaving Skjolden. 

Our perils were now over ; but we had still 
a long descent before coming to the permanent 
habitations of man. The valley we traversed 
is called the Bseverdal ; and it is said that 
formerly this wild and remote glen contained 
some of the European species of Beaver, now 
nearly extinct, or only to be found in furthest 
Lapland. Much of the scenery was fine, much 
of it beautiful, even in the eyes of tired, sleepy 
travellers ; though considerably tamer than on 
the southern side of the chain. 

On arriving at the first Gaards of Qvams- 
volden, the sight of Farm houses and corn 
fields, seemed wondrous strange in our eyes, 
so long unaccustomed to any sign of man, or 
man's works. There were still, however, eight 
or nine long miles to the nearest place where 
I could lodge, at Hoff : and as I found that 
the half starved horses would require at least 
two hours' rest, I preferred walking down 



IN NORWAY. 328 

there at once, to the infinite astonishment of 
my toilworn companions. The gratification of 
having achieved a difficult and (at this season) 
a doubtful exploit, and of having seen so 
thoroughly the very interior of the loftiest 
mountain chain in Northern Europe, gave 
me spirits and vigour: but I could not help 
feeling much self-satisfaction that at the end 
of perhaps the most laborious twenty-four 
hours I ever passed, without any thing that had 
deserved the name of either food, or rest, I was 
yet able voluntarily to walk the last stage to 
my night quarters. 

I obtained some very grand views of snow 
mountains on the way; and the river, whose 
banks I followed, rolled through several con- 
tracted chasms of great depth and beauty. 
I had also time to see that HofF, which I 
reached about midnight, was picturesquely 
situated, in a fine vale, at the junction of two 
streams : but I confess that the sight which 
pleased me most, was a large lumber room, 



324 TWO SUMMERS 

with a diminutive bed in one corner, wherein 
I jumped, nothing loth; after giving the 
strictest injunctions in the best Norsk I could 
muster, that no one should presume, on any 
account whatever, to disturb me until I called : 
an injunction, which, considering their in- 
ordinate curiosity, they obeyed surprisingly 
well. 

No sooner, however, the next morning, had 
I given symptoms of having waked from my 
long and glorious slumbers, than my apart- 
ment was invaded by a numerous levee of both 
sexes, who watched me through all the pro- 
cesses of shaving, washing, &c, until some 
necessary arcana of the toilette fairly compelled 
me to turn them out, against their will. A 
newly arrived Chimpanzee could not have 
excited greater interest among London fashion- 
ables. Every thing I produced was examined, 
and the commonest articles admired, and won- 
dered at, as they passed from hand to hand. 
I could not find it in my heart to deprive 



IN NORWAY. 325 

them of what was evidently so great and rare 
a gratification; as I clearly saw that their 
intrusion, however annoying to me, was per- 
fectly innocent on their part, proceeding en- 
tirely from ignorance, not from impertinence. 

When sufficiently rested, in the afternoon 
I rode quietly down to Lorn, a distance of 
seven or eight miles, through a broad valley 
of pleasing, but not striking features. I had 
a letter to the Priest, (Heyerdal,) whom I found 
to be a man of superior intelligence and at- 
tainments. I need not add, that both he and 
his amiable Lady evinced the hospitality for 
which " Old Norway" is so justly celebrated : 
and it being the Eve of Saint John, a party 
of young folk were assembled to light bonfires, 
and observe other time-honoured ceremonies, 
interesting for a stranger to witness. 

The next morning, I took a boat down the 
Lake Otte Vand, on which Lorn is situated, 
to Vaage at its Eastern termination. The 
little village of Lorn is picturesquely built at 



326 TWO SUMMERS 

the foot of a conical mountain, called the 
"Egg of Lorn/ 5 close to the embouchure of 
the Bseverdal, which here discharges its turbid 
waters, over a pretty Foss, into the Lake : to 
the right, the Lake branches up to Skiaker, 
where it is closed in by a circle of fine moun- 
tains. This prospect, as seen about a mile 
from shore, pleased me greatly : the rest of 
the voyage presented nothing very remarkable. 
The Otte Vand is so entirely fed by torrents 
from the glaciers, that it is always dirty and 
unfit for Angling: I tried it a short while, 
but scarcely saw a fish rise. 

Priest Kragh, of Vaage, was an old ac- 
quaintance of mine, to whom I had promised 
on my previous visit to Norway, that I would, 
if possible, pass a few days with him, in case 
I returned to these parts. I was therefore 
not sorry to have this excellent opportunity 
of witnessing the familiar mode of life of this 
important class, while resting from my late 
fatigues. 



IN NORWAY. 327 

The Priests necessarily exercise great influ- 
ence in this country, even independently of 
their ministerial authority, which seems much 
higher estimated, than is usual in other Pro- 
testant countries. They are universally far 
better educated than those by whom they are 
surrounded ; and are well off, if not positively 
rich, according to the Norwegian scale of 
incomes. I have already alluded to the cir- 
cumstance of their being eligible to a seat in 
Parliament; and in their own respective dis- 
tricts they are of necessity at the head of all the 
local charitable, or statistical, or legal establish- 
ments, in which their superior intelligence 
gives them unlimited influence. All those 
with whom I became intimately acquainted, 
were well educated, and well conducted. The 
great peril of their position is lest they should 
sink down too much to the standard of those 
with whom alone they have any opportunity 
of intercourse. 

It is a sad deprivation, and a perilous trial 



328 TWO SUMMERS 

to a man of cultivated intellect, never from 
year to year to meet with one kindred soul, 
with whom he can exchange and correct his 
ideas : and in the country, the impossibility 
of obtaining books deprives the Priest even 
of that resource of the educated man. The 
annual Visitation certainly affords them a brief 
occasion of mixing with their clerical brethren ; 
and it may be thought that the education of 
their children, which, in the absence of fit 
schools, unavoidably devolves on them, should 
serve in some degree to keep up a doubtful 
connexion with literary pursuits. 

While at Vaage, I was greatly distressed 
at the number of wretched objects, who daily 
came for a relief, the Priest could not possibly 
extend to half the applicants. The last four 
harvests had so lamentably failed in con- 
sequence of early frosts, throughout the 
mountainous districts, that Kragh assured 
me upwards of 2000 out of a population of 
5000 in his parish, were in a state of utter 



IN NORWAY. 329 

destitution; and some of the neighbouring 
parishes were in a still worse condition. 

In every Prsestegild, there is an establish- 
ment, called the " Fattige-vsesen," or Poor 
Board, formed of the Priest and his Church- 
wardens, to which each of the Farmers is 
obliged to contribute a certain proportion of 
corn; besides some fees at marriages, &c. 
But, however sufficient it may be in ordinary 
seasons, this establishment was totally inade- 
quate to meet the distress that prevailed this 
year. The Storthing had in addition voted 
considerable sums for the purpose ; but still, 
not merely whole families, but whole districts 
were suffering from positive famine. 

Upon leaving my very kind, and entertaining 
host, he easily persuaded me, instead of taking 
the direct road from Vaage to Laurgaard, to 
ride over the mountains to Tofte, for the 
purpose of visiting a romantic Glen, called 
Gjendal, or Echo Valley. The whole family 
accompanied us, so that we formed an im- 



330 TWO SUMMERS 

posing cavalcade : the weather was delightful, 
and the mountain views of great extent and 
interest. 

After traversing some high ground, we came 
to the edge of the "Echoing Dale/' which I 
found to be a long and deep chasm evidently- 
effected by some violent convulsion transversely 
athwart the mountain chain that forms the 
Western barrier of Guldbransdal. To enjoy the 
wild scene, we climbed upon a projecting pin- 
nacle of shattered slate rock, which could not 
be less than 1500 feet above the bottom of the 
dell. Other cliffs rose still higher ; but all bore 
evidence, in their sharply fractured crags, and 
in the vast masses tossed in most admirable dis- 
order down their precipitous flanks, of the 
enormous force with which they had been rent 
asunder. 

The dark depth of this narrow chasm is 
entirely occupied by a chain of miniature 
lakes ; the water of which flows off continually 

at both ends, in a way common to the trans- 



IN NORWAY. 331 

verse vallies of Norway. After long gazing 
down upon the horrors of this romantic spot, 
we descended to admire it from below, by a 
path so steep, that one of our party, a hale 
young fellow, could not be persuaded to at- 
tempt it. To please my companions, I fished 
in the lowest and worst lake, for an hour; 
and although there was no wind, soon caught 
a dozen of the beautiful trout that abound 
here. After which, we bivouacked on its banks 
most delightfully, sang Norsk songs, inter- 
changed the warmest greetings and good 
wishes, and finally drank a long, and I fear 
a last, Farewell. 

A couple of hours' ride through a pretty vale 
brought me into Guldbransdal, at a point three 
or four miles below Tofte ; to which place I 
proceeded, and was happy to find that my 
servant had previously arrived with the car- 
riages in perfect safety. The next morning, 
I took the route already described, over the 
Dovre Fjeld to Trondhjem, stopping a day or 



332 TWO SUMMERS IN NORWAY. 

two at Jerkin, to fish the neighbouring lakes. 
But if this mountain pass, high as measure- 
ment and vegetation assure us it to be, had 
before appeared to me tame, how insignificant 
did it seem to my eye lately accustomed to 
the perils and magnificence of the Fiile Fjeld, 
and the Sogne Fjeld ! 



end or VOL. I. 



Pardon, Printer, Alfred Place, Biackfriars Road. 



TWO SUMMERS IN NORWAY. 



TWO SUMMERS 

IN NORWAY. 



BY THE AUTHOR OF 

"THE ANGLER IN IRELAND. 



IN TWO VOLUMES. 
VOL. II. 



LONDON: 

SAUNDERS AND OTLEY, CONDUIT STREET. 



1840. 



PaTdon, Printer, Alfred Place, Blackfriars Road. 



! 



■ 



TWO SUMMERS IN NORWAY. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Return to the Namsen — Advice as to Flies, and Tackle — 
Changes since my first Visit — Piscatory details — Great suc- 
cess — My heaviest Salmon — 1 ' Minimum house" again — 
Jacob of Rosssetter — Splendid sport under Fiskum Foss — 
At Vaerum — Size of Salmon killed in the Namsen — Reca- 
pitulation of Sport — Other rivers near — Game — Slaughter 
of a Bear — Wolves — Eagles — Lemmings — Laws and Cus- 
toms respecting Fisheries — Early frosts — Distress — Finally 
quit the Namsen. 

On revisiting the Namsen, in 1839, I reached 
my old quarters at Mediaa, by the 11th of 
July : and received the most affectionate wel- 
come, not only from my good host Iver, and 
his family, but also from all whom I had for- 
merly known, who seemed universally to regard 

VOL. II. B 





SKETCH. 
9UV IKK NA3ISE 


•; 1 Q 


V'" v* tfflfp 
1 ^ Jgj 1 



















2 TWO SUMMERS 

me as an old friend. I was also glad to see, 
that "both here and at my other quarters on the 
KAver, the money spent among them, and the 
experience they had obtained of an English- 
man^ requirements, had partly been laid out, 
as they promised me it should be, in furnishing 
their houses with many domestic comforts be- 
fore wanting. 

The Namsen was still of a milkyish hue, and 
daily rising without rain ; which proved that 
the snows had not yet disappeared from the 
Fjelder where it has its source. However, an 
English Gentleman, who had anticipated me 
by a few days, had already caught several 
Salmon; though none of any size : he reported 
that the river was full of an unusual number 
of small Grilse : but at least it was evidently 
not too early to try the fly. 

My expectations of success were much in- 
creased by the conviction that I was far better 
prepared than on my first visit. My previous 
ignorance of the character of the stream, and 



IN NORWAY. 3 

the size of the fish, had caused me to fill my 
books with flies and tackle totally unsuited to 
the monsters I had to encounter. This sum- 
mer, I took care to bring with me an abundant 
store of gigantic flies, made by Evatt, of War- 
wick-street, and Kelly, of Dublin, as well as 
some of the largest used on the Tweed for the 
Spring fishing. I found them all answer well ; 
but those tied by Evatt, having been manufac- 
tured under my own superintendence, were, 
perhaps, the best adapted to the River. It is 
but justice to an excellent fly-tier to add that 
they were as unimpeachable for strength, as for 
beauty. They were most severely tested ; and 
neither the gut nor steel gave way with the 
heaviest fish: withal, they were as cheap as could 
be reasonably expected for such an article. 

In general, the most brilliant colours were 
the most successful; such as blood red, bright 
orange, or brilliant blue, with handsome wings 
of the golden Pheasant, and other showy fea- 
thers. When, however, the water became low 
b 2 



4 TWO SUMMERS 

and clear, dark colours, so long as they were 
really dark? not dingy, usually answered best. 
In Salmon fishing, the colours should always 
be decided; half and half shades, neither one 
thing nor another, are highly objectionable : 
the fly ought to have either a well pronounced,, 
and uniform character, or else a marked con- 
trast of colours. 

At times, I found a perfectly black body, 
with jet black hackle, and broad silver twist, 
with light or even white wings, very killing. 
A few of the Tweed flies also, in which half 
the body was black, and the other half bright 
orange, were occasionally successful : but I lost 
so many large fish, either by the Scotch hooks 
breaking, or the gut snapping close to the 
head, that I latterly seldom employed them. 

As I came to the Namsen for the express 
purpose of killing heavy fish, I used none but 
flies of the very largest size : and having inva- 
riably had better success than any of my coun- 
trymen with whom I came in contact on this 



IN NORWAY. 5 

river (who usually employed much, smaller 
flies) both in the number, and individual size, 
as well as total weight of fish, I cannot do 
otherwise than recommend my successors on 
that noble stream to follow my example. At 
the same time, this inordinate size of the fly 
was very unfavourable to hooking small Grilse ; 
which will in some measure account for the 
disproportion between the rises and the cap- 
tures recorded in my list. 

The line that I found to answer the best, 
was a silk one well oiled, by Martin Kelly : it 
• ran out and was wound up, more easily, and 
also was stronger, than the patent mixture of 
horse-hair and silk, which is preferable where 
continual casting is required, but is not so well 
adapted to the Namsen. The objection to the 
silk line is, that it is heavy, and in wet wea- 
ther is apt to cling to the rod : but it is not 
so liable to chafe, or become entangled, as the 
patent line, and besides takes up less space. I 
surely need scarcely add that the casting line 



6 TWO SUMMERS 

must be of tlie strongest treble gut, the reel 
of ample dimensions and single action, the gaff 
of wide curve, and firm build. As for the rod, 
each Angler has his favourite maker ; but I 
confess that, after trying many, I have found 
none equal to those manufactured by George 
Eaton, of Crooked-lane, for perfection of finish, 
truth, and durability. 

My superior equipments, as well as my 
improved acquaintance with the river, justified 
my expectation of much greater success than 
what I had enjoyed on my former visit. How- 
ever, many untoward circumstances contributed * 
to counterbalance these advantages. The sum- 
mer of 1837 had indeed been so sultry as 
generally to prevent my fishing except in the 
morning, or evening; whereas in 1839 1 could 
almost always angle throughout the day. But 
then, in the former year there were several 
high floods, after each of which the river was 
filled with heavy Salmon ; while in the latter, 
there was but once or twice a slight rise of 



IN NORWAY. . 7 

water, without which, not even in so copious 
a stream as the Namsen, will the larger fish 
run up in any quantities. Moreover, on my 
first visit I had the river nearly to myself; 
whereas I have already mentioned that an 
English Angler had arrived before me in 1839, 
who continued during the greater part of my 
stay : besides which, two other countrymen 
occupied the best portion of the river, during 
the best of the season. 

But still more than this, many of the natives 
had taken up angling in the English method. 
I have before observed that, though the Nor- 
wegians are not endowed with inventive talent, 
they show a great turn for imitation : and 
either by rowing in the boats with Englishmen, 
or by watching them from shore, they had 
picked up enough of the art, to annoy us at 
least, if not to secure much sport for them- 
selves. Their tackle was of the rudest de- 
scription : but yet sufficient at least to rise the 
most taking fish. If these were small, they 



8 TWO SUMMERS 

were frequently killed; if they were strong, 
away went tlie flimsy gear : but at all events 
tlie passage of tlie boats and flies over the 
pools, much diminished the chance of any 
better Artist who followed them. 

I was also grieved to find that not only had 
this newly-developed passion for Fly-fishing 
made them unusually jealous of their supposed 
rights on the River, but also that those who 
were not employed as boatmen had begun to 
grudge their more favoured neighbours that 
were enlisted in the Englishmen's service. The 
four orts, or 3s. 4d, which we gave for two 
men and a boat, per diem, with a liberal share 
of fish and other perquisites, were too great an 
object of envy in this poor district. Conse- 
quently, all wanted to pull in my boat : and as 
I had no idea of being dictated to, in a mat- 
ter on which my chance of sport so much 
depended, as the selection of my Boatmen, 
I had some trouble in silencing, I will not 
say satisfying, their conflicting claims. 



IN NORWAY. 9 

The first year I was on the Namsen, all whom 
I employed, or to whom I gave fish, expressed 
the greatest gratitude: this summer, it seemed 
that those who were excluded took offence, 
while the others received our guerdon almost 
as a right. I am inclined to believe that much 
erf this wrong feeling was attributable to the 
conduct of some Englishmen, in the preceding 
year, who from an ignorance of the language 
and customs of the country, had not only fished 
on the Sabbath, which gave deep offence ; but 
had habitually taken their Fossland boatmen to 
all parts of the river where they had no shadow 
of right, and had never made a fair distribution 
of the Salmon, among the Farmers in whose 
water they were taken. They consequently left 
an unfavourable character behind them, except 
with those who were immediately benefited by 
their expenditure; and a load of obloquy for 
their countrymen to fight against. Should this 
feeling, and the passion for angling increase, 
the beaux jours of the Namsen are past, 
b 3 



10 TWO SUMMERS 

The Englishman, to whom I alluded as hav- 
ing preceded me, lodged with my former boat- 
man, Lorenz, and of course employed him : I 
was therefore compelled to take, in addition to 
my host's son, a neighbouring farmer, named 
J ohannes Claussen, of Mediaa. He rowed well, 
and was intelligent enough, but not of a cha- 
racter to please me in other respects : he was 
also very fond of Angling, and I retained him 
in my service, more to keep him from mischief, 
than from affection. 

In describing my first visit to the Namsen, 
I attempted to give some slight account of each 
day's sport ; thinking that such details, how- 
ever bald, would convey a juster idea of the 
capabilities of the river, than if I had culled 
only two or three of the best days, leaving the 
Reader to imagine that the rest were equally 
brilliant. However, on this occasion, I shall 
content myself with a more general description; 
or only detail those exploits, which seem to 
deserve especial commemoration. 



IN NORWAY. 11 

I have already mentioned the fact of the far 
greater proportion of small Grilse, which ap- 
peared in the river this summer, and the want 
of floods to induce the large Salmon to run up, 
until towards the end of my stay. In conse- 
quence of this, I had by no means so many op- 
portunities of capturing immense fish, as I had 
lost on my former visit : but on the other hand, 
experience had taught me to profit better by 
such as fell in my way. I had so well drilled 
my boatmen as to be able to follow the move- 
ments of the most violent Salmon, with a short 
line, and a steady hand : so that if only the 
hook held, I did not often let him escape, even 
in the most cramped place. 

The morning after my arrival, my country- 
man having given up to me the water below 
Mediaa, which he had been fishing for the last 
week, I sallied forth at an early hour. The 
upper streams were far too full of snow water : 
and I saw nothing but a Grilse or two, until 
I came to Spsekkan Pool, above Moe, before 



12 TWO SUMMERS 

honourably mentioned. Here I immediately 
rose four or five fish, and killed three, one of 
them of twenty-five pounds, that quite glad- 
dened my eyes, as reminding me of my old 
friends in this magnificent stream. I rose no 
other heavy 7 fish; the river appearing to be 
monopolized by a shoal of Grilse, of four or 
five pounds' weight. 

The next day, I started with the intention 
of paying my respects to Priest Sorensen at 
Vserum : but was fortunately stopped by a 
storm of rain, at Spsekkan Pool, where the 
most glorious sport subsequently detained me 
till the evening. Fresh fish were continually 
running up from the sea, as was shown by 
the lice still adhering to many : they seemed 
to be exclusively of two sizes, small Grilse, 
or Salmon of about twenty pounds. In this 
single Pool I rose sixteen fish ; and killed ten : 
of which five were from eighteen to twenty-two 
pounds, and gave me splendid sport. My 
total weight this day, with eleven fish, was 



IN NORWAY. 13 

137 pounds, the highest figure I had yet at- 
tained on the Namsen. 

On the following Monday, I gave up this 
part of the river to my English friend, and 
tried the Fossland water, where he had totally 
failed with his small flies. I found indeed the 
best pools still too high : but in the shallower 
part of " Fossland Reach," I hooked and killed, 
after an hour's strong play, a very powerful 
fish of twenty-eight pounds ; besides losing 
another of nearly equal size, in consequence 
of not choosing to allow him to run among 
some dangerous rocks, for which he fought 
hard, and the hold gave way. 

But this was nothing to the success that 
awaited me in the "Elbow Pool," a favourite 
spot for large Salmon when the water is high. 

Here a fish rose, evidently of great size, 
but unfortunately missed the fly : and although 
I tried two or three other beautiful deceptions, 
I could not induce it to stir again, until an 
irresistible red fly of Evatt's, tempted it to 



14 TWO SUMMERS 

its destruction. Yet even then, it took not the 
fly into its mouth ; but by good luck I struck 
the barbed steel into the muscle of the pectoral 
fin, which afforded as good a hold, though of 
course not so much command over the fish, 
as if it had been fixed in the jaw. For the 
first ten minutes, the monster was highly 
"indignant of the guile shooting up and 
down and athwart the stream, with a speed 
extremely difficult to follow: for to attempt 
to curb him at the first, was entirely out of 
question. 

At length, however, ■ by what appeared to 
myself and boatmen to be dexterous handling* 
I succeeded in steering him past all danger 
into a deep still pool ; where I bore upon him 
with my whole strength, and after several 
ineffectual struggles, brought him near enough 
to be gaffed. In a few seconds more it was 
weighed; when it proved to be over forty 
pounds, the heaviest I have ever killed on this, 
or any other river. It was only three feet 



IN NORWAY. 15 

ten and a half inches in length, that is an inch 
shorter than the two largest I killed on my 
former visit; although it exceeded them in 
weight, by three, and six pounds respectively. 

When I saw the huge creature stretched 
upon the shore, with his deep, thick flanks, 
and enormously powerful tail and fins, I could 
scarcely comprehend how I had, in so short a 
time, baffled his utmost strength, in his native 
element. For, notwithstanding it was hooked 
foul, my servant ascertained by his watch, 
that the fish was landed in exactly half an hour, 
from the moment of being hooked. Many of 
inferior size took double the time before they 
would yield; those of twenty-eight pounds, 
being usually, according to my experience, the 
strongest and most active. 

I caught one other lively fish of fourteen 
pounds : but to my infinite annoyance, as I 
was returning to Mediaa, I perceived a Seal, 
evidently on his way up the river, in pursuit 
of the shoal of Salmon that had recently 



16 TWO SUMMERS 

appeared ; and the following day, near Vaerum, 
another of these unwelcome intruders displayed 
his bull-dog visage above the water, just as I 
reached the best Pool, and of course destroyed 
all my chance of sport. 

Leaving my countryman to settle the matter 
with these arch enemies of the Angler, I 
resolved on trying what the Fiskum Pools 
would produce. It was with great satisfaction 
that I gazed again upon all my well remem- 
bered haunts, where I had so enjoyed myself 
two brief summers before. The Foss was 
full of water, and in high beauty : and even 
a Minimum House," bore evidence of having 
been garnished in expectation of my arrival. 
But more than all, every one expressed so 
much gratification at seeing me once more 
amongst them, that my heart irresistibly 
warmed to the kindly natives of this wild 
district. 

The renewal of my acquaintance with this 
part of the River, however, was not so satis- 



IN NORWAY. 17 

factory in other respects. The Foss Pool was 
unapproachable from the quantity of water: 
and instead of finding the other Pools as full 
of Salmon as I had expected, they seemed 
to contain hardly any large fish. Nor was this 
the worst : I had immediate and "most dis- 
agreeable proof that the passion for Angling 
had wonderfully extended since I was last 
here. On reaching the "Boat Pool/' I saw 
it was already preoccupied by a couple of men 
from Gothland; and either they, or others, 
regularly fished the best places on every favour- 
able evening. 

By far the most annoying of these inter- 
lopers was Jacob of Rosssetter, who lived close 
to the splendid Pool I have named after him. 
The very first day I attempted to fish there, 
he came down in his boat, and signified to me 
in most uncivil terms that he expected I should 
give him up all the fish I might catch, although 
even by their own customs he was only half 
owner of the water. And upon my telling 



18 TWO SUMMERS 

him he should have his fair share of what I 
caught, in the same way as he well knew I 
treated all the neighbouring Farmers, he pro- 
ceeded in a very impertinent way to fish the 
Pool in conjunction with me ; a process which 
he only varied subsequently, * by doing the 
same every day before me. 

One evening, however, he was more than 
usually obnoxious : for, after having spoiled 
my sport in the lower Pools, directly that he 
observed me on my return homewards, he 
pushed on before me, to anticipate me in my 
own Boat Pool, where he knew I always took 
my latest cast. Seeing his object, I allowed 
him plenty of time ; thinking he would become 
tired, and depart I misjudged my man ! On 
my arrival at that immense Pool, he instantly 
left the upper part where he was fishing, and 
bearing doiyn upon me, in the most insolent 
manner, swung his boat round actually upon 
my line. It was well for him that I was not 
a man of war ; or the indignant remonstrances 



IN NORWAY. 19 

I showered on him in my best Norsk, would 
have been replaced by more intelligible indica- 
tions of my feelings. I, however, took care 
to let every one hear of his conduct, as well 
as my opinion of it : and as all the respectable 
neighbours, including my good friend the 
Priest, sided with me, Jacob was eventually 
shamed into better behaviour. He attempted 
to excuse himself by alleging (whether truly or 
falsely, I know not) that two English officers, 
the previous summer, had daily fished his 
water, without giving him any share of the 
Salmon; and that he expected I meant to do 
the same. 

The only day that I had any sport to com- 
pensate for these annoyances, was the last I 
spent at Fiskum on this occasion : when, after 
shooting some Capercailzie in the morning, I 
took my boat into the Foss Pool, which I 
had not been able to try before. There was 
still so large a body of water as to render this 
a difficult, and with any other than such ex- 



20 TWO SUMMERS 

cellent boatmen as I had, a dangerous opera- 
tion. The thundering river that dashed over 
the lofty Fall threatened every moment to 
sweep us away, as we shot across the rapid 
torrent. However we accomplished it in safety, 
although drenched with the heavy spray, as 
much as if we had been exposed to the pelting 
of the most pitiless storm. 

From a rock that advanced as near to the 
Fall as I could possibly penetrate, I rose an 
immense fish in the very breakers, I am quite 
confident not less than forty pounds in weight. 
It was, without doubt, the wildest spot in which 
I ever hooked a large fish ; and he proved the 
wildest of his tribe. He plunged at once into 
the very centre of the cataract, apparently with 
an intention of sounding its lowest depths ; 
my line was nearly run out, yet I scarcely 
knew where the fish was, when I suddenly saw 
him springing amidst the foaming surge, more 
than 100 yards from me. 

He next made the most desperate efforts to 



IN NORWAY. 21 

escape into the lower Pool, whither I could not 
follow him, except by shooting a rapid of so 
perilous a character, that I preferred holding 
him by main force, notwithstanding all his 
struggles. I expected each instant that some 
part of my rod or line would break ; but so 
good was my tackle, that it bore the enormous 
pressure upon it, without giving way : and I 
had already brought the monster some distance 
up the violent stream, and he was showing 
evident symptoms of weakness, when after 
half an hour's most splendid play, the hook 
came out of his mouth, and he escaped. 

Without wasting time in useless regrets, I 
returned to the same rock, and at the first cast 
hooked another fine Salmon, which I at once 
saw was some dozen pounds less than the one 
I had just lost. Yet did he look most magni- 
ficent, from the elevated spot where I stood, as 
he darted through the eddying foam, to seize 
the fly. He pursued exactly the same tactics 
v as his predecessor ; and when, finally, he per- 



22 TWO SUMMERS 

sisted, in spite of all my efforts, in rushing 
down tlie impetuous stream, I resolved at all 
hazards to follow him, not choosing to lose two 
such fine fish, without a brave effort at least. 

We were dreadfully knocked about, and 
nearly swamped in the attempt : however, we 
safely entered " Karnen's Pool" with the Sal- 
mon, whom I then easily killed; and he 
weighed upwards of twenty-eight pounds. I 
can scarcely conceive it possible to enjoy finer 
sport than I had with these two fish : more 
vigorous Salmon, or a wilder spot to play them 
in, I never saw. It will be seen by my list 
that I also caught six smaller fish, without 
even trying below the Boat Pool. 

A day or two after my return to Mediaa, 
some heavy rain slightly flooded the river, and 
was immediately followed by the appearance of 
« numerous large fish. I was fortunate enough 
on two successive days to encounter these 
shoals on their progress upwards, at two most 
excellent spots : on the 27th, at a bend of the 



IN NORWAY. 23 

river, near Vserum, called Gunhild's Bjerg; 
and on tlie 29th, at my favourite Pool of Spaek- 
kan. It is of the greatest importance, in fish- 
ing the Namsen, to take care, whenever from 
the state of the water Salmon may be expected 
to run up, to be upon one of the best Pools. 
They rest in such places for a short time, during 
which they take the fly well ; and then rapidly 
pass up, leaving the streams quite deserted, 
which a few hours before swarmed with fish. 

I had a good example of this at Gunhild's 
Bjerg. I could plainly observe the Salmon 
spring up the Rapid at its lower end : again 
and again I fished the water over, rising fresh 
fish each time. I altogether rose eighteen within 
three or four hours, several of them large and 
very strong : I killed two of twenty-eight 
pounds, and two of nearly twenty pounds each, 
besides five Grilse. But when I tried the Pool 
again in the evening, after having dined with 
my kind friends at Vserum, not a Salmon was 
to be seen ; all had passed up. 



24 TWO SUMMERS 

On the 29th I had an equally good morning's 
sport at Spsekkan, of exactly the same character; 
only that the rain came down so heavily, and 
so much discoloured the water, as to drive 
me home before the day was half spent, and 
while numbers of fresh Salmon, of the largest 
size, were running up each moment into the 
Pool. 

It was unfortunate for my piscatory success 
at this period, that I had previously arranged 
to spend the next few days with Priest Sorensen, 
at Vserum : for few fish remained in this lower 
part of the River, and the weather became so 
hot, as quite to disincline those few to move at 
the fly. However, I was amply recompensed 
by the friendly society of this very amiable 
family, from each of whom I received marks of 
kindness calculated to impress me with the 
most favourable recollections of the Norwegian 
character. 

The Glebe-house of Vserum is not worthy 
of its inmates, being both insufficiently small, 



IN NORWAY. 25 

and out of repair. But its situation is pictur- 
esque, at a sudden bend of the Namsen, oc- 
casioned by the lofty Steen Fjeid, which stands 
rudely across its course ; while other more 
distant and finely broken mountains form a 
perfect amphitheatre around. The precipitous 
range of the Steen Fjeld so overhangs Vserum 
to the eastward, as entirely to exclude all sight 
of the sun, during thirteen weeks of the win- 
ter, when that luminary rises but a short way 
above the horizon. How inexpressibly joyous 
must be the sight of the long lost orb, when 
he first peers above the rocky summit ! the 
well remembered day of his reappearance is 
anxiously watched, and observed as a fete in 
the neighbourhood. 

On my return to Fiskum, I had very excel- 
lent sport, as may be partly gathered from my 
list. There was not a day that I did not catch 
many large fish, besides the many more that 
I hooked and played : and in such wild places ! 
I several times tried the wildest of all, the 

VOL. II. c 



26 TWO SUMMERS 

Foss Pool : but it was not until August 1 2th, 
that I was enabled by the gradual falling of 
the water to fish any considerable portion of 
it; when I enjoyed far the most splendid 
day's sport I can ever hope to have to record, 
I began well: I had scarcely commenced., 
when, off a rock in the Boat Pool, I hooked, 
and after long play killed, a beautifully shaped 
fish of thirty-four pounds : and soon after, 
another of twenty-four pounds near the same 
spot, as also a third of eleven pounds. I had 
already had a good day's sport : but in the 
rapid stream between the Foss and Karnen's 
Pools, (which I have named, "the Foss Ra- 
pid,") I rose several fish, of which I fortunately 
killed the largest, weighing thirty-three pounds, 
besides a fine Salmon of eighteen pounds, and 
a Grilse. 

We then with great difficulty worked our 
frail bark up into the Foss Pool; and at the 
risk of shipping a perilous quantity of water, 
proceeded to fish as well as I could a small 



IN NORWAY. 27 

extent of flat water, by the side of the boiling 
torrent. Never in my life have I encountered 
such wild water ! Scarcely had I cast my fly 
into the most likely spot, when an enormous 
Salmon took it, but being slightly hooked, 
soon escaped. A minute afterwards, a monster 
of similar size dashed through the glancing 
waves ; and I instantly felt he was firmly 
hooked. In another moment he was in the 
midst of the Fall : baffled there, he rushed 
up and down, with a determination of purpose, 
but irregularity of course, that made it very 
difficult to retain a correct hold upon him. 
I could not stand in the boat that danced on 
the bounding breakers : scarcely could I see 
or hear, so blinded was I with the spray, so 
deafened with the cataract's eternal roar. 

At last he made down the stream as if to 
quit the Pool ; and we prepared to follow him 
through the dangerous Rapid already described. 
However, it seemed that his courage failed 
him, and he took refuge behind a deeply sunk 
c 2 



28 TWO SUMMERS 

rock, from which it required much positive 
labour and strength to dislodge him. At 
length, he was compelled to yield ; and on 
being landed, was found to weigh thirty-seven 
pounds ; but though therefore not the heaviest, 
he was by nearly an inch the longest Salmon 
I ever killed, measuring rather over four feet. 

In the same spot, I afterwards caught two 
beautiful, fresh run Salmon of twenty-four, 
and eighteen pounds each : and hooked two 
other heavy fish, one of which (certainly not 
under thirty pounds in weight) I played for 
a considerable time ; when he eventually broke 
the line by entangling it round a rock, a mis- 
fortune not to be w ondered at in so dangerous 
a place. And, finally, I concluded this brilliant 
day by landing a pretty Salmon of ten pounds, 
and a small Grilse ; making a total weight of 
216 pounds with eleven fish. A gratifying 
total under any circumstances : but when the 
individual size of the Salmon is further con- 
sidered, and still more the character of the 



IN NORWAY. 29 

water in which they were killed, I am almost 
tempted to doubt whether any Salmon fisher 
ever enjoyed a more glorious day's sport. 

The weather about this time became very 
much broken : the 13th of August that I fished 
down to Fossiand was cold and raw, as winter ; 
and in the course of the night it froze suffi- 
ciently to blacken the potatoe tops. The fol- 
lowing day was little bettter : but being fortu- 
nately able to reach the Foss Pool in the after- 
noon, I killed there four magnificent Salmon, 
which averaged twenty-six pounds each ; and 
afforded me great sport. The next day I was 
also very successful, catching seven fish, which 
weighed together ninety-seven pounds ; not- 
withstanding that I was very unlucky in losing 
several good Salmon, apparently without any 
just cause. 

And this was the last good day's sport that I 
was destined to have upon the Namsen: for 
during the two following days that I remained 
at Fiskum, the water rapidly fell, and the fish 



30 TWO SUMMERS 

seemed simultaneously to quit this part of the 
River. There was still a far larger body of 
water than I ever saw in the Tweed ; yet I had 
undeniable evidence that the Salmon, even at 
this early season, returned to the sea. Not 
only did they suddenly disappear from all the 
upper Pools, but frequently, while fishing, I 
observed Salmon, that from their size and 
colour I could not possibly mistake, jump once 
or twice at the higher end of a pool, which they 
appeared to have but just entered ; then soon 
after towards the middle, and again spring at 
the bottom, within the course of a few minutes: 
after which I saw no more of them. 

On August 17, I was able to fish over the 
greater part of the Foss Pool ; but only saw 
two Grilse jump : I rose none there with the 
fly. It seemed that after ascertaining the im- 
possibility , of surmounting the cataract, the 
majority had dropped down the river, as soon 
as they found the water begin to lower. The 
few Salmon that remained, moreover, took the 



IN NORWAY. 31 

fly very badly : and such as I caught were be- 
coming of a dark red colour, and altogether out 
of condition. In addition to these hints of the 
close of the season, many of the best Pools 
were so low, that the natives attempted to net 
them every evening : from the rocky character 
of the streams, these attempts were not very 
successful, but at least sufficed to diminsh 
greatly my chance of sport. I rather think 
that they succeed better with the Lyster in the 
spawning season. 

According to all accounts, that is also the 
season when the largest Salmon enter the 
Namsen : if one might believe what the natives 
say, some can be little less than 100 pounds. 
I should, however, be sorry to vouch for the 
truth of this enormous weight. I am convinced 
that in 1837, I rose one or two Salmon which 
weighed from fifty to sixty pounds at the least ; 
on my second visit, I have no reason to think 
that I saw any heavier than the one I killed, 
viz, forty pounds; and in neither year, was 



82 TWO SUMMERS 

there a single fish caught by any other Angler, 
of even equal size. A friend of mine, in a pre- 
vious year landed one that fairly weighed forty- 
five pounds : and I have heard a still greater 
weight ascribed to a monster that was killed by 
a well known English Angler ; I understand, 
however, the latter was not weighed, and those 
who saw it assured me it was certainly not 
larger than the one before mentioned. 

In 1838, one of the best native Anglers, 
named Claus Moen, undoubtedly caught a 
Salmon that weighed very nearly sixty pounds: 
he hooked it in the Boat Pool, and it ran him 
down the Long Rapid to below Rossaetter 
Naes ; taking him three hours to land it. I 
believe this to be the heaviest Salmon ever 
yet killed with the rod on the Namsen. Those 
that I have recorded certainly sink into in- 
significance by the side of this Leviathan : 
but where else is the river, yet known to Ang- 
lers, on which six consecutive weeks of so 
good Salmon-fishing can be obtained ? 

I : 



IN NORWAY. 33 

It will be seen by my list for 1839, that I fished 
parts of thirty-three consecutive days (except- 
ing always Sundays) three of which were blank : 
that in the remaining thirty days, I killed 
147 Salmon, and nine white trout, together 
amounting to 1772 pounds : that eight of these 
weighed from thirty to forty pounds each, while 
no less than forty-six weighed eighteen pounds 
and upwards. So that notwithstanding the 
unusual proportion of Grilse in the Namsen 
this year, the individual average was somewhere 
about twelve pounds : while in 1837 it was still 
higher, reaching almost fifteen pounds each 
fish. I am acquainted with no river, where so 
high an average, upon so large a number, can 
be expected: or where so many consecutive 
days of first-rate Angling may be enjoyed. 
Odd days may doubtless be selected almost 
every season, when at least double the number 
and weight that I ever captured on the Nam- 
sen, may be killed on the Tweed. But for 
how short a period does the fishing there last ! 
c 3 



34 TWO SUMMERS 

and how immeasurably inferior is the easy cap- 
ture of a score of Kelts in the Sprouston Dove, 
to tlie serious encounter with, a glorious thirty 
pounder, under Fiskum Foss ! 

Before quitting the banks of this magnificent 
stream, the Angler may perhaps wish to know 
if there be no opportunity of varying his sport 
by an occasional morning's trout fishing in the 
neighbourhood. I fear there is none. The 
N^msen itself contains scarcely any trout : and 
the few Lakes in the surrounding mountains 
have no boats on them, and are at too great 
distances to reward a piscatory expedition. I 
have tried once or twice, the upper Foss on 
the Namsen, where I was assured there are 
large trout ; but I saw only very few small fish. 
I have also fished the Sundolen River, near 
Ekker, at the foot of a likely looking Fall : a 
few Salmon frequent it in the Autumn, and I 
have caught there a couple of Grilse; but 
though I tried both fly and troll more than 
once, I never saw a trout above a pound. 



IN NORWAY. 35 

Much better is the Overhalden River, up 
which Salmon ascend i as far as Flasnaes ; 
though not in any considerable numbers. I 
several times intended to try it, from mere 
curiosity, although aware I could expect no 
sport to compensate for what I gave up on the 
Namsen : but circumstances, unnecessary to 
mention, prevented me. 

The Sportsman, who is fond of shooting, will 
find more to occupy his attention. On my first 
visit to this district, I saw little game except 
wild ducks, and golden plover : but the next 
time I was there, I greatly improved my larder 
by the discovery that there were a great num- 
ber of Ryper (or Ptarmigan) on the mountains, 
as well as Capercailzie, and Hjerper (Tetrao 
Bonasia, or the hazel hen) in the forests. 
The latter is the most delicately flavoured bird 
I know. The breast has not the layer of brown 
flesh usual to other game birds, but is of the 
purest white throughout. This is accounted for 
by an old Norwegian tradition, to the effect 



36 TWO SUMMERS 

that there was originally one enormously large 
Hjerpe, on which all *the other birds pounced, 
and partly devoured, whence they obtained the 
layer of white flesh they possess next the 
breast ; and their poor victim became dimi- 
nished to its present proportions. They are 
very tame, at least here, where they are so 
little disturbed ; and when roused from their 
feeding ground, fly up into the neighbouring 
trees, gazing stupidly at the intruder. 

I always made a point of allowing my boat- 
men a couple of hours' sleep after their mid-day 
meal ; and while they were taking ! their siesta, 
I dived into the nearest pine forest, and rarely 
returned without either Hjerper, or young 
Capercailzie : I saw some old Cocks, but they 
escaped me. I had no dog : but my English 
friend before mentioned occasionally took the 
Fjeld, with a brace of Setters ; and generally 
killed from five to ten brace of Ptarmigan, be- 
sides other Game. 

By far his greatest exploit, however, was the 



IN NORWAY. 37 

slaughter of a Bear, which had killed a cow, 
about three miles from the Gaard where he 
lodged : whereupon he went up to the spot the 
next evening ; and on the beast's returning, as 
he expected, to taste its dainty prey, he fortu- 
nately succeeded in disabling it at the first shot. 
It proved to be an old, and not very large fe- 
male : but the courage with which our country- 
man lay in his solitary ambush, within twenty- 
five yards of the ferocious brute, much en- 
hanced the natives' idea, not only of his indi- 
vidual, but of the national bravery. 

There were many other bears known to be in 
the neighbourhood: insomuch, that I doubt 
not a man like Mr. Lloyd, properly equipped 
for this chace, would have great success, and 
would confer a valuable benefit on the inhabi- 
tants, who are dreadfully afraid of Mr. Brain. 
Wolves are also abundant, particularly in the 
mountains near the S setters ; and still more in 
the vicinity of the Lapps and their Reindeer. 
They are so shy, that I never actually saw one : 



38 TWO SUMMERS 

but thrice we observed the fresh print of their 
feet on our path to the Boat Pool : and during 
my stay many dogs were devoured by them. 

Occasionally, in searching for other game, I 
flushed a Woodcock: but though they undoubt- 
edly breed in this country, I do not believe 
they are very common. Besides five or six 
species of Ducks that frequent the Namsen, I 
every day saw numbers of the Northern Diver ; 
of which I shot a few. And to complete my 
brief list of the wild birds of this district, I will 
only mention that in addition to the Fishing 
Eagles, which were usually to be seen near 
Fossland, I frequently observed Eagles of the 
largest kind soaring above us; and on one 
occasion I saw a pair, I believe of Golden 
Eagles, perched for the night on the face of 
a perpendicular crag near the Long Reach, 
which, though screaming at me all the while, 
allowed me to approach within a hundred yards. 
Singular enough too, an immense specimen of 
the large Norway Owl, from the summit of the 



IN .NORWAY. 39 

same cliff, kept hooting at me, while attempt- 
ing to creep within shot, across the crackling 
wood. 

But much the most interesting animals that 
fell under my observation were the Lemmings. 
This singular little species of the genus Mus, is 
confined, I believe, to Scandinavia, and some 
Northern portions of Russia. Its appearance 
is periodical; some say it appears every seventh, 
others every tenth year. It also seems to be 
capricious in its choice of residence, as whole 
provinces are infested with it, while in the in- 
termediate districts not one is visible. On 
my former Tour through Norway, I did not 
see a single Lemming ; this year, 1839, they 
abounded in certain parts, but not every where. 

I have mentioned that I saw the first on the 
Fille Fjeld, and Sogne Fjeld : there were none 
in Romsdalen, or on the Dovre Fjeld, while 
the Western shores of the Mjosen swarmed 
with them. From that point I saw none 
until I reached Steenkjser, where there were a 



40 TWO SUMMERS 

few, which rapidly increased until I reached 
Nummedal, where they were in thousands. 
Naturalists account for their periodical ap- 
pearance by supposing that they inhabit the 
most retired mountains, until they have 
multiplied beyond the means of subsistence, 
when they become gregarious, and descend 
into the plains. There most of them perish : 
the few that return, with those that have re- 
mained in the mountains, repeat the same 
process, after a certain time, with the same 
result. 

The natives have a much simpler, if not so 
scientific explanation of the phenomenon, 
being convinced that they drop from the clouds 
in a thunder storm. I have talked with many 
who had been accustomed to traverse the 
mountains all their lives, and who assured me 
they had never seen a single Lemming in any 
intermediate season. I suspect, however, that 
they may be always found at least in the 
Northern portion of the Kjolen Chain which 



IN NORWAY. 41 

separates Norway from Sweden. It is from 
this direction that they appear originally to 
come ; in great numbers certainly, but not in 
such dense masses, as some old books would 
lead one to imagine. Though there may be 
many hundreds within the space of an acre, it 
is seldom you see more than two or three toge- 
ther ; much oftener, they are single. 

They are said universally to travel westwards ; 
and no obstacle stops them ; not only will they 
paddle across such rapid streams as the Namsen, 
but even over salt water Fjords ten miles in 
width. Yet they do not seem well adapted for 
swimming : their legs are very short, their feet 
extremely small and delicate, without any web. 
Their colour is a rich brown, broadly striped with 
black on the back, and softening into light fawn 
colour on the belly. Their bodies are plump ; 
their tail not half an inch in length ; their heads 
rather short and thick, so that altogether they 
have much more the look of a Guinea pig than 
of a rat. They have, however, the rat's teeth; and 



42 TWO SUMMERS 

if attacked, stand up on their hind legs, squeak- 
ing shrilly all the time, and springing at their 
foe, just like the rat. 

They are very fierce, when first caught, but 
some that I brought to England, soon became 
sufficiently tame to allow themselves to be 
handled : and very pretty little creatures they 
were. I carried eight of them about with me 
for several weeks in a small box ; and notwith- 
standing the rough usage to which they were 
necessarily exposed on the road, they main- 
tained excellent health. I fed them chiefly on 
brown bread and vegetables, with occasionally a 
little meat, or fish : in fact, they would eat 
any thing. Unfortunately, one of the last 
nights I spent in Norway, six of them escaped 
through the negligence of my servant, when I 
could no longer replace them. The other two 
I consigned to the Zoological Gardens, Regents 
Park, in the best apparent health : but they 
both died within a week, through some mis- 
management. These singular animals are 



IN NORWAY. 43 

usually preceded on their migrations by an 
Arvicola, called here the Blue Lemming. It 
is of a sooty blue colour, and altogether much 
more resembles a very large mouse, than the 
Lemming : its tail is much longer, and its mo- 
tions infinitely quicker : it is also far rarer. 

The Lemmings do great mischief in the 
fields, devouring every thing that falls in their 
way : but they have many enemies, biped, 
quadruped, and winged. I was even informed, 
upon authority that I cannot possibly question, 
that the Reindeer not only kills them, but is 
very fond of eating them ! That an herbivo- 
rous and ruminating animal should show a 
penchant for such food, seems passing strange : 
but in addition to other witnesses, Priest 
Sorensen, a gentleman of unimpeachable ve- 
racity, and enjoying the best opportunities 
of observation during his annual visits to the 
Lapps' Chapels, positively assured me that 
when a Reindeer observes a Lemming at any 
distance, he runs to it, strikes it dead with 



44 TWO SUMMERS 

a blow of his fore-foot, and instantly swallows 
it whole ! This may appear strange to others, 
as it did to me : I can only say that I could 
scarcely have better evidence, short of actual 
sight, than I obtained of this singular fact. 

A still greater enemy to the Farmer in 
certain districts, this year, was a perfectly 
smooth caterpillar, of a dark olive colour, and 
about three quarters of an inch in length. In 
many vallies to the North of Trondhjem, it 
appeared in incredible numbers, during the 
early part of the summer, and completely laid 
bare not only the meadows, but also the young 
corn fields. Old people told me they remem- 
bered the appearance of a similar plague, some 
thirty years ago. 

But there remains one still greater enemy 
to the "Landed Interest," with which the 
farmer of Nummedal has to contend ; that is, 
the early frosts, which too often destroy all his 
hopes in a single night. This was the case 
in 1838 : and indeed had happened, more or 



IN NORWAY. 45 

less, on all the higher Farms for the last four 
years. No wonder therefore that the frost 
which occurred on August 13th of this year., 
(1839,) caused great consternation; it blackened 
many of the potato fields ; and two or three 
nights afterwards the barley was frostbitten 
in exposed situations, which induced many to 
cut their corn quite green, rather than run 
the risk of losing it all. 

Poor People ! they were generally suffering 
privations, such as, even in Ireland, would be 
considered grievous. Scarcely any of the bet- 
ter farmers could afford to eat pure barley 
bread, without any mixture of fir bark : and 
very many were compelled to live on bark 
bread alone ! The stock of the district being 
exhausted, all who could scrape the money 
together, sent some of the family to purchase 
corn, after the patriarchal fashion, at the nearest 
markets along the sea coast. They seldom 
could obtain it at a less distance than seventy 
or eighty miles : the price was very high, and 



46 TWO SUMMERS 

the quality indifferent : while the toil of poling 
up such a stream as the Namsen with a heavily- 
laden boat, may be imagined. 

Under such circumstances, even the little 
addition to their stock of food, which my rod 
and gun afforded, was an object of some con- 
sequence : still more so, was the money I 
disbursed among them. Even the better class 
of farmers, though able to live in tolerable 
comfort upon the produce of their land in 
ordinary seasons, have little or no opportunity 
of realizing money. They have nothing to 
sell; and there is no one to buy; forasmuch 
as each of their countrymen supplies himself, 
in the same manner, that they do, with the 
three great necessaries of human existence, 
" Fire, food, and clothes." The small sums, 
therefore, that I distributed to my hosts and 
boatmen,- were an object of competition, which, 
as we have seen, occasioned some bickering 
at first : nay, I was even favoured with a sort 
of Round Robin on the subject from four of 



IN NORWAY. 47 

the farmers of Grong, However, by just 
dealing and the powerful assistance of my 
friend the Priest, I eventually succeeded in 
allaying this feeling, so as to part from all not 
only on the most amicable terms, but appa- 
rently with deep regret. 

From the best information I could obtain 
in Christiania, I believe that, according to law, 
Angling is on the same footing as shooting, 
which is perfectly unrestricted throughout Nor- 
way. I was assured by the highest authority 
that no one can prevent any other from fishing 
in a boat, or even from landing, except upon 
enclosed and cultivated ground. But though 
I believe this to be the undoubted law of the 
kingdom, the Bonder have established a law 
among themselves, to which the stranger must, 
for his own sake, pay some deference. 

Each proprietor considers he is entitled to 
the fishery of the river opposite his farm : and 
I respected this supposed right so far as always 
to present one half of my booty to the farmer 



48 TWO SUMMERS 

in whose fishery it was caught: the other moiety 
I reserved for myself, boatmen, and host. But 
when they wished me also to take my rowers 
invariably from the Gaards opposite to which I 
angled, I decidedly refused. From Fiskum 
down to V serum there are thirty-seven propri- 
etors on the water : and as I have shown how 
much depends on the discipline of the boat, 
it never would answer to be constantly chang- 
ing your men, just after teaching them their 
duty. 

I should, however, most strongly recommend 
any of my countrymen who may follow me to 
the Namsen, invariably to select their boatmen 
from the principal proprietors of the part of the 
river they fish : thus, from Fiskum, while an- 
gling in the upper part ; from Fossland, when 
in the centre ; from Grong or Mediaa, when on 
the lower portion : and if they remain any 
length of time, it will be as well occasionally to 
change their men. 

I think I have mentioned the established 



IN NORWAY. 49 

tariff to be four marks, (oris, they are called 
in the North) per diem, or 3s. 4d. for a boat 
with two rowers. Moreover, I made it a 
rale to give a dollar (four shillings English) 
for every Salmon over thirty pounds, or for 
a total weight of 100 pounds caught in one 
day : which gave my men an interest in my 
success, without materially increasing the ex- 
penses of the Tour. At the various houses 
where I lodged, I gave half a dollar a day for 
my lodging, cooking, barley bread, potatoes, 
butter, and milk : every thing else I provided : 
and as my hosts also got a good share of the 
fish, and often pulled in my boat, they were 
abundantly satisfied. 

It is not more than forty years since the 
first potatoes were introduced as a curiosity 
into this district ; they are now universal, and 
in general excellent. The butter is by far the 
sweetest and most luscious I ever met with any- 
where : and latterly my breakfasts were much 
improved by mountain strawberries of exqui- 

VOL. II. D 



50 TWO SUMMERS 

site flavour, and tlie far-famed Moltebser before 
described. 

I linger still upon the Namsen, though I 
much fear tlie reader who is only acquainted 
with that noble BAver through these pages, will 
hardly partake of the enthusiasm with which 
I look back on the happy days I spent upon its 
banks. Every thing contributed to render 
them amongst the happiest, for which I am 
indebted to my passion for Angling. The ex- 
cellence of my sport, the grandeur of the 
scenery, the primitive and novel mode of life 
\ of the natives, with the uninterrupted health 
and lightsome spirits I enjoyed, made those 
six weeks glide imperceptibly away with un- 
welcome rapidity. It seemed but a few days 
since I had witnessed the crops emerge from 
the ground ; and already the sickle was busy 
in every field. Autumn had evidently arrived; 
and the almost nightly frosts told that Winter 
was rapidly advancing from his Northern Halls. 
Therefore after again visiting my most kind 



IN NORWAY. 51 

and amiable friends at Vaerum, where a large 
party was assembled for the annual Visitation, 
I bade a final adieu to this King of Salmon 
Rivers on the 23rd of August, and returned by 
the Snaasen Vand to Trondhjem. 



d 2 



52 



TWO SUMMERS 



CHAPTER IX, 

Route from Trondhjem to Molde — OrkedaL— Surendal — Ferries 
on the Western Fjords — Delays and difficulties — Beauty of 
scenery — A midnight Voyage — Romsdalen — Magnificent 
prospects — A couple of days' Angling — Another excur- 
sion to the Fjeld — Great success — Three Reindeer shot — 
Upper part of Romsdalen — Traditions of Colonel Sinclair 
— An overturn — Lake Lessbe — Guldbrandsdal — Return to 
Christiania. 

I had heard so imicli of the beauty of the 
Western Fjords, and of the picturesque grand- 
eur of Romsdalen, that I determined to vary 
my route, on my last return from Trondhjem to 
Christiania, by taking that line, in preference 
to either of the more direct roads by Roraas, 
or the Dovre Fjeld, both of which I had already 
seen. In addition to the novelty of this West- 
ern route, I knew from the experience of two 
friends whom I met on the Namsen, that very 
fair Salmon fishing might be enjoyed at certain 



w 

IN NORWAY. 53 

seasons in the Rauma Elv: while the only- 
drawback was the annoyance to be expected 
at the many Ferries across the Fjords. 

I left Trondhjem for, I fear, the last time, 
on August 28th, in weather that promised 
better for the Angler, than the Tourist : it had 
rained hard during the night ; and the heavens 
were still charged with dark, heavy clouds. 
I soon quitted the great Southern Road, and 
crossed an arm of the Trondhjem Fjord, into 
which the Guul discharges its waters. I heard 
here, as at all the Northern rivers, that the 
Salmon had never been so scarce as this sum- 
mer. In the Nid hardly any fish had been 
taken ; insomuch that the price at Trondhjem 
had risen to 5d. and 6d. a pound for fresh, and 
7d. or 8d. for smoked Salmon. 

After leaving the Fjord, the road traverses 
a mountainous district, covered with fir forests ; 
in the midst of which I came upon a consider- 
able Lake that had every appearance of being 
well adapted for Angling: I was told there 



m 

54 TWO SUMMERS 

were plenty of trout in it, but I could not 
learn any tiling positive as to their size, and 
fly fishing had never been practised on it. I 
next crossed some high, and very poor ground, 
where the crops had been entirely destroyed 
by the early frosts, and the inhabitants ap- 
peared to be in a most miserable condition. 
A long and steep descent brought me into 
Orkedal, or the Valley of the Orke, the same 
river which I had crossed much higher up, at 
Bjerkager, on my way over the Dovre Fjeld. 

I observed here the same immense terraces 
of alluvial matter, rising one above the other, 
which are so commonly seen in the Norwegian 
Vallies, that descend from the loftier moun- 
tains ; and which all attest the same fact of 
the water having stood at successively diminish- 
ing levels, (all above the present level of the 
existing rivers and lakes,) during very con- 
siderable periods; for no lesser time could 
suffice for the water to wear down the very 
hard rocks over which it flows, and deposit such 



IN NORWAY. 55 

&u enormously thick mass of detritus, as we 
see here, for instance, and in Vserdal. In con- 
sequence of this rich deposit, the lower part 
of Qrkedal is remarkably fertile and well cul- 
tivated, It has also the charms of a happy 
combination of hill and wood; which rapidly 
assume grander features on advancing up the 
course of the stream, 

I took the road on the Western side of the 
river, as being shorter and less hilly than the 
other : and at Moe, I was so pleased with the 
scenery and the appearance of the people, that 
I was easily persuaded to remain a day for the 
purpose of trying the Orke. I was well aware 
that a few Salmon at least ascend this river 
to a Foss some way above Bjerkager; and it 
could not be in better order, so that I expected 
some tolerable sport. Early the next morning, 
I commenced at a beautiful Pool about a mile 
above Moe ; and fished carefully down for four 
or five miles. There was a succession of most 
unexceptionable pools and streams, the day 



56 TWO SUMMERS 

was favourable, and the water in excellent trim ; 
nevertheless, I did not see the slightest sign of 
a Salmon ; and eame to the conclusion that at 
this season there could scarcely be one, in this 
part of the Orke. I caught but a single white 
trout, and two or three small river trout. 

The natives agreed in assuring me that a 
couple of months earlier, there had been a 
good many fish in the water, but that they 
had now run up higher. They, however, 
allowed that their numbers had greatly dimi- 
nished of late years ; for which they could 
not account : but I endeavoured to impress 
upon them that this fact was very easily ex- 
plained by their having latterly placed weirs 
across the entire course of the river, which in 
ordinary states of the water, prevent any Sal- 
mon whatever from passing. This is not only 
contrary to an express law, but must eventually 
destroy the best Salmon river ; I suspect also 
that the water from some copper works, about 
two or three miles above Moe, may contribute 



IN NORWAY. 57 

to the extirpation of the fish; as I observed 
that the river below them was quite red, where- 
as higher up it was clear as crystal. Whatever 
may be the cause, it is at any rate very evident 
that the Orke is not worthy of detaining an 
Angler for even a day from better streams. 
Hares and Hjerper are tolerably numerous in 
this neighbourhood ; and at a distance of seven 
miles is a considerable mountain Lake, which 
contains (as I was assured) very large trout, 
and an abundance of Char. 

I have said that the scenery around Moe is 
extremely picturesque : above, it becomes much 
more savage. The valley contracts into a wild 
ravine, which hardly allows space enough for 
the imprisoned river to force its tumultuous 
way : and from the point where I quitted it, 
some twelve or fifteen miles from Moe, I could 
see that for some distance at least, its deep and 
noisy path lay through the same grand gorges, 
opening occasionally into short, isolated glens, 
of more peaceful character. 

d3 



58 TWO SUMMERS 

The valley of Surendal, into which I now 
passed, is far from being so picturesque as that 
of Orkedal ; though there are in its long course 
many scenes to please the lover of mountains. 
I have, however, every reason to believe that 
its river is much better supplied with Salmon; 
as at each of the stations I heard of their 
nightly catching several fish with nets. Whe- 
ther it may be good for the Angler I cannot 
say ; as I believe no one has ever tried it, and 
my bad success on the Orke determined me to 
waste no more time at this season. I can vouch 
for there being many tempting streams and 
pools, particularly about Haandstad: but at 
each of them I also observed nets suspiciously 
hung up to dry, which may doubtless interfere 
much with fly fishing : and in the upper part, 
are the same sort of weirs I reprobated on the 
Orke. In the hills on the Eastern side of the 
valley are numerous lakes, full of Char ; which 
are caught either in the autumn, when they 
resort to the shallows "to spawn ; or in the win- 



IN NORWAY. 59 

ter, by making a hole in the ice. A little be- 
low Haandstad, the river becomes too wide and 
still for Angling. 

Surendal debouches into a considerable Fjord, 
which extends about thirty miles seawards, 
to Christiansund; besides branching out many 
miles, in the other direction, into the bosom 
of the mountains. My object, however, was 
to cross it, a distance of about fourteen miles : 
and as it was the first Fjord of any magnitude 
that I had attempted to pass with carriages on 
board, I felt not a little anxious as to the 
feasibility of the operation, with such slight 
craft, as I had hitherto seen. I soon found it 
would be impossible to convey both carrioles 
in the same boat : and I, therefore, despatch- 
ed one carriage immediately after my arrival, 
with three men and a lighter bark : while I 
ordered the largest boat they had, and five 
rowers, to be ready for myself early the next 
morning. 

These Ferries across the wider Fjords are a 



60 TWO SUMMERS 

sad annoyance to the Tourist in, exploring the 
magnificent scenery of the Western coast of 
Norway. In bad weather they are impassable, 
without great risk : and at the best, are at- 
tended, not only with great additional expense, 
but with anxiety, trouble, and damage illimit- 
able. It is impossible to calculate the time, 
that may be required, so as to despatch a For- 
bud for any distance : and without it, the delay 
in obtaining men and boats would peril the 
temper of the most patient of mortals. 

At each Fjord the wheels must be taken off 
even a light Carriole ; which not merely occa- 
sions much trouble, but also much mischief in 
the various shipments and unshipments. All 
must help; as the natives are very far from 
being expert or intelligent in these arrange- 
ments : and then master as well as man must 
find as comfortable a berth as he can among 
the greasy wheels, or well tarred boards; keep- 
ing always a sharp eye to windward, in case it 
blows at all, to avoid the splashing waves. 



IN NORWAY. 61 

The boats, of whatever size, are universally 
of the same light build, before described ; en- 
tirely of fir, pointed and somewhat raised at 
both ends. Each man pulls a pair of small- 
feathered oars, except the steersman, who rows 
with one hand, while with the other he manages 
a very long-handled rudder. I cannot say 
that my experience justifies me in calling the 
Norwegians hard rowers : on the contrary, they 
take it remarkably easily, and are as glad as 
any of their fraternity for an excuse of the 
slightest breeze to hoist a sail. 

This much in fine weather : but in stormy 
weather the traveller may be confined for days in 
the very miserable pot houses that supply the 
place of Inns along the coast. Even at Suren- 
dalsoren, the place of embarkation for two such 
considerable towns as Christiansund and Molde, 
the accommodations were both scanty and bad, 
and the provisions little better ; set off by the 
usual ancient fish-like smell, the least agreeable 
accompaniment of the seaside. 



62 TWO SUMMERS 

However, the weather, which had been threat- 
ening, changed most unexpectedly, and the 
next morning's sun rose in glorious majesty. 
How soon does the human mind, when backed 
with youth and health, shake off its cares, and 
spring at once from zero to contentment's point ! 
The previous evening, I had been wet, cold, 
cast down by the discouraging state of the wea- 
ther, the unknown perils of the voyage, the 
discomforts of "mine own Inn:" but to-day 
all was bright and cheering, and my spirits rose 
proportionably, to greet and enjoy the rich dis- 
play of God's creation that awaited me. 

Volumes of light mist yet remained, the re- 
cords of the preceding day's storm : and as they 
floated up the dark glens, or curled round the 
base of the projecting mountains, under the 
influence of the breeze and sun, they added to 
scenery, in itself highly grand and beautiful, 
those thousand accidents of light and shade, 
which any one, who has wandered through a 
mountain country, must remember to have 



IN NORWAY. 63 

made tlie deepest impression on his own mind, 
though the most incapable of transmission, by- 
description to another. 

As the mists cleared away, we reached the 
middle of the passage, whence we commanded 
three several arms of the Fjord : and I now saw 
we were surrounded by lofty snowy ranges that 
towered far above the dark cliffs that immedi- 
ately enclosed the waters of the Fjord. Those 
in the direction of Sundalen and Romsdalen, 
whither I was bound, exhibited especial gran- 
deur of outline and elevation; and at once 
satisfied me as to the noble character of the 
mountain district I was approaching. 

So favourable had been our little voyage, 
that we reached our place at Vaagoen (fourteen 
miles from Surendalsoren) in a couple of hours : 
we then harnessed the ponies that awaited us, 
and rattled over the narrow Isthmus to the 
station of Baekke, on the next Fjord. Here 
I was made practically aware of some of the 
desagremens attending the navigation of these 



64 TWO SUMMERS 

arms of the sea. Not expecting to make so 
rapid progress, I had ordered the boatmen to 
be ready two hours later than the time I 
actually arrived : and as they lived at a con- 
siderable distance, it was impossible to hasten 
them. I had therefore nothing else to do, 
but stroll, with as much patience as I might, 
along the adjoining shore; while my servant 
repaired some serious injury which one of the 
carriages had suffered at the last debarkation. 

The prospect was such as might well soothe 
a more troubled spirit than mine was. It 
would be difficult to imagine a more secluded 
and tranquil situation, amid scenery on so 
large and grand a scale. A beautifully circular 
bay, about two miles in breadth, formed a sort 
of offshoot from the parent Fjord, which was 
seen in the distance branching right and left. 
The encircling mountains were lofty and finely 
shaped ; but though occasionally descending 
with steep cliffs into the water, they more fre- 
quently swept down with graceful curve, so as 



IN NORWAY. 65 

to admit of vegetation high, up their verdant 
sides, and to afford a secure resting place at 
their feet to a few scattered hamlets. 

In the midst of this retired scenery stood a 
Church, with a Manse attached to it ; both, of 
a size and consequence that scarcely appeared 
proportionate to the scanty population visible 
within the extensive amphitheatre I com- 
manded. When I learned that the incumbent 
was son of Bishop Bygge, and brother to the 
very talented Rector of the Latin School at 
Trondhjem, I could not help pitying a man of 
his acquirements and education, being so shut 
out from the converse of kindred minds, as he 
must necessarily be. 

Yet even in the cursory survey I took, I 
could observe many evidences of the advantage 
derived from the presence of a superior per- 
son, in the wildest spot. There was a regularly 
enclosed garden, (so unusual an appendage to 
a Norwegian house,) in which were various 
vegetables and fruit trees. The adjoining 



66 TWO SUMMERS 

fields exhibited a mucli better state of agricul- 
ture, than I had lately seen ; while a wellbred 
English sow, just imported, showed Priest 
Bygge's wish to improve the native breed, of 
which it is little to say that it is by far the 
worst and ugliest I ever met with. I doubt 
not that his exertions to cultivate the minds, 
and improve the hearts, of his parishioners, 
are at least as energetic and useful. At length 
the boatmen arrived, not many minutes after 
their time ; greatly to the relief of the drunken 
old landlord of Bsekke, who had cunningly 
put his clocks half an hour back, lest I should 
insert a complaint at their want of punctuality. 
Then the boat had to be launched, the oars 
to be found, the carriages to be embarked, 
various preparations and squabbles to be 
adjusted: so that, in short, three precious 
hours were lost, and alas ! the breeze, which 
had hitherto been so favourable, completely 
died away; and consequently, we had to pull 
to Eidsoren, (a distance of eight miles,) in 



IN NORWAY. 67 

an overloaded boat, with five men who had 
been working hard all the previous morning, 
beneath a scorching sun, and a sultry atmo- 
sphere. It took us three hours to reach Eid- 
soren, where not having ordered horses I was 
again greatly delayed. The distance across 
the Isthmus, to Eidsvog on the Lange Fjord, 
being only five or six miles, I preferred walk- 
ing; and just reached it, as Peder came up 
with the carriages. 

The disasters I had previously encountered 
were, however, nothing in comparison with 
those that awaited me here. Not a soul was at 
home; and when at last we ferreted out the 
Skydskaffer, who was cutting corn a couple of 
miles off, we found that no ten-oared boat 
was at the station, the person bound to supply 
such, having illegally taken it away to a fishery. 
There was an eight-oared boat, belonging to a 
Priest, on the opposite shore : but when I sent 
to him for the loan of it, (to which I was entitled 
by law,) he returned for answer in a couple of 



68 TWO SUMMERS 

hours, that he should want it the next day to 
go to a distant church, and therefore could not 
let me have it. 

By this time the shades of evening had closed 
in, and a number of peasants returning from 
their harvest work, had collected around me, 
from whom I could obtain nothing but com- 
miseration — no assistance. As, however, it 
was totally impossible to stay where I was, 
(there being no place to sleep at, and absolutely 
nothing to eat, not even butter and barley cake) 
I eventually persuaded three men to take me 
and my carriole, down the Fjord to Alfarnses, 
in the largest boat we could obtain, which was 
but a small three-oar. It was totally insuffi- 
cient for the purpose, in any except the finest 
weather ; but as the night, though dark as 
Erebus, promised to be perfectly calm, I did 
not hesitate to trust myself in it, leaving Peder 
to follow when and how he best could. 

There seemed something adventurous in thus 
launching forth into the bosom of the black 



IN NORWAY. 69 

night, on a midnight voyage of fourteen or 
fifteen miles, over an unknown Fjord, in a frail 
bark, witli perfect strangers. I wrapped my- 
self up in my cloak in as comfortable a position 
as I could assume between the wheels of my 
carriole : but the strangeness of my situation 
contributed, still more than the uncomfortable- 
ness of my posture, to drive sleep from my 
eyelids. I never witnessed a darker night : we 
could not see distinctly the length of our boat, 
so as to render steering impossible to any but 
the most practised native : and I shall never 
forget the effect produced by the cottage lights 
dotted like indistinct stars upon the sides of 
the unseen mountains, at perfectly indistin- 
guishable distances. Every now and then we 
crossed lateral arms of the Fjord, or glens in 
the line of coast, at the head of which I could 
just make out, in H the palpable obscure," the 
mysterious outline of snowy peaks, that per- 
haps looked all the more impressive for the 
murky darkness in which they were enveloped. 



70 TWO SUMMEKS 

The morning broke finely, as we approached 
our goal, and disclosed a wide expanse of the 
Fjord on which Molde is situated, with some 
apparently high snow mountains to the South- 
west. We soon after reached Alfarnses, where 
we knocked the people up, and got some coffee, 
which greatly refreshed myself and men. They 
were good, honest fellows, with whom I was 
much pleased, both for having helped me out 
of my difficulties when their fellows shrank 
from the task, as well as for the cheerfulness, 
steadiness, and skill, with which they had ac- 
complished our nocturnal voyage. 

As soon as I could obtain a steed for my 
carriole, I started for Torvig, where a short 
Ferry leads across the Fjord, to Veblungsnaes, 
a small village at the entrance to Romsdalen. 
During the latter part of this stage, I had 
ample opportunity for appreciating this scenery, 
so little visited, though so much vaunted, and 
to view which I had encountered so many 
annoyances. I confess that I at once felt them 



IN NORWAY. 71 

a thousand fold repaid. I know not whether 
the recesses of the Hardanger Fjord (which I 
have not seen) may contain still finer scenery : 
but nothing that has fallen under my eye in 
Norway is, in my judgment, at all to be com- 
pared with the head of RomsdaFs Fjord, and 
the Valley as far as Romsdal's Horn, for pic- 
turesque grandeur, that borders on, if it does 
not quite attain, the sublime. 

I might add, that this is perhaps the only 
district that fully realized my preconceptions of 
Norwegian scenery. The mountains range 
from 3000 to 5000 feet in height : their sides 
are for the most part as sheerly perpendicular 
as it is possible to conceive; while a deep 
mantle of snow caps their summits, and fills all 
the ravines, wherever practicable for it to he. 
Their forms are withal exceedingly diversified : 
in the Fjord, they are bold, projecting, massive; 
but near Romsdal's Horn, they are splintered 
and peaked into a thousand fantastic shapes. 
The head of the Fjord branches into two prin- 



72 TWO SUMMERS 

cipal arms; besides which, there are several 
subordinate Glens, of great grandeur, connect- 
ed with the principal valley. Nor are softer 
features altogether wanting to this magnificent 
panorama; the Northern shore being much 
lower, formed by undulating hills, often well 
covered with wood, interspersed with a few pic- 
turesque cottages, and patches of cultivation. 

The Ferry across from Torvig to Veblungsnaes 
is only three miles: but gusts of wind swept down 
with such unexampled violence from the Vind 
Tinde, (or Windy Peaks, as they are justly 
named,) that it was with great difficulty, not 
unattended by danger, that we accomplished 
the distance in an haur and a half. Here I 
found excellent quarters at a " Privileged Mer- 
chant's," of the name of Fladmark : and in a 
very few minutes forgot all the annoyances of 
Ferries, want of sleep, and of food, in the 
most glorious slumbers. 

Veblungsnaes is a good sized village ; and 
from its position enjoys a considerable trade 



IN NORWAY. 73 

with the interior, as far as Gruldbrandsdal. 
There is a well attended Fair in autumn, 
frequented by merchants from Trondhjem, 
Bergen, and even Christiania : but at all other 
seasons the trade seems to be entirely in the 
hands of my host, Mr. Fladmark, who is one 
of that privileged class, which throughout 
Norway have the sole permission, from the 
Storthing, of selling the usual articles of con- 
sumption, without any other check on extor- 
tion, that I am aware of, than their own con- 
sciences, and the necessities of the purchasers. 

I presume the original cause for establishing 
these monopolies, was the encouragement of 
tradesmen to settle in thinly populated districts, 
by securing them against undue competition. 
But it must be a bad system : and indeed is 
attended with so great evils, that Mr. Laing 
seems to attribute to it chiefly the demoraliza- 
tion of Sweden, of which he gives so frightful 
a picture ; although it equally prevails in Nor- 
way, without apparently being followed by 

VOL. II. E 



74 TWO SUMMERS 

equally calamitous consequences. However, 
I had only to do with Mr. Fladmark in his 
capacity of host : and it is but justice to add, 
that though his charges were somewhat higher 
than those of the country, I found his house, 
both in point of accommodations and viands, 
one of the very best I met with in Scandinavia. 
I staid there three or four days, as well to ex- 
plore the neighbouring scenery, as to try the 
Rauma river, where, I mentioned, two English 
friends had very good sport on their way to 
the Namsen. 

The morning after my arrival, I drove about 
six or seven miles up Romsdalen, to a spot 
which had been described to me as the best 
for Angling. The River there, after struggling 
through a long succession of wild rocks, tum- 
bles over two or three considerable Falls, which 
though nbt absolutely insurmountable to Sal- 
mon, delay many of them in their ascent, and 
consequently fill the pools immediately below 
with fish. These Fosses are situated at the 



IN NORWAY. 75 

very foot of Bomsdals-Horn : and though. I do 
not wish to tire my reader with the reiteration 
of my raptures,, I cannot omit all mention of 
this scenery, which it would be difficult to 
parallel for romantic grandeur, in any country. 

The lower part of the Valley is broad and 
fertile : but the mountains on either side 
increase in height as they rapidly converge 
above the Foss, so as barely to allow sufficient 
space for the road at their rocky base. " The 
Horn" itself (as it is significantly designated) 
is a most picturesque object, terminating in 
two cusps, of which the highest is crowned 
by a pillar, to show that even its savage preci- 
pices have been scaled by man. Immediately 
adjoining it are the shattered peaks of the 
Vind Tinde, which rise to very near 5000 
feet : and the opposite side of the narrow 
gorge is closed by the equally lofty Troll Tinde, 
or Witch Cliffs, the most strictly perpendicular, 
of any rocks of equal height, that I remember 
to have seen. Where all the mountains are 
e 2 



76 TWO SUMMERS 

remarkable for their singularly broken outline, 
these last are especially conspicuous for their 
strange fantastic pinnacles, which, when seen 
against the clear blue sky, assume the form 
of, and have been named after, owls, dogs, 
men, &c. 

Olden Tradition says that they are the 
Witches and Daemons of heathenism, trans- 
formed into these enduring monuments at the 
time St. Olaf christianized this Valley by the 
powerful arguments of fire and sword. I 
would not affirm that the modern inhabitants 
altogether believe these tales ; but I observed 
they avoided the subject as much as possible, 
and when pressed, spoke " with bated breath," 
and as I thought, with evident respect of these 
" Good People." All mountaineers are super- 
stitious ; and the Norwegians are by no means 
exempt from this weakness, for which some 
excuse may be found, not only in the delusive 
atmospheric pheenomena common to all moun- 
tainous countries, and the avalanches of snow 



IN NORWAY. 77 ' 

and rock, to which this Valley is peculiarly 
exposed ; but perhaps still more to the almost 
total seclusion from the rest of the world, in 
which its inhabitants live. 

Before I commenced fishing, I was univer- 
sally assured that I had come at least six weeks 
too late : and I soon had reason to believe 
common report for once to be correct. In 
the course of several hours that I patiently 
tried all the best part of the river, for nearly 
a mile below the Foss, I saw but two or three 
Salmon rise, in places, where either I could 
not cast my fly, or the water was too still. The 
only fish that moved in a favourable spot, I at 
once hooked, and landed: it proved a pretty 
Grilse of eight pounds weight. And upon my 
second visit to the Rauma, two days later, (for 
rain prevented my returning there the next 
day,) I rose but one Salmon, in the same pool 
where I had caught the other, which, however, 
afforded me better sport, being much larger, 
and weighing upwards of twenty-one pounds. 



78 TWO SUMMERS 

Others saw I none : and though the natives 
every night netted the larger pools,, wherever 
practicable, as well as set smaller nets, called 
Garns, from the banks (in the same way as 
the Kelso fishermen practise during floods in 
the Tweed) I heard that they had taken 
scarcely any fish for some time. It was there- 
fore evident that such as had not been caught, 
had either run higher up, or had returned to 
the sea. 

The Foss under Romsdals-Horn is suffi- 
ciently high and strong to prevent any except 
the most powerful fish from ascending in ordi- 
nary states of the water : and to increase the 
difficulty, " Bygnings," or wooden traps, have 
been built out into the most practicable parts 
of the Fall, with considerable ingenuity and 
success. Higher up, the course of the Rauma 
is so rapid and rocky, as not to admit the use 
of the Naat, or large net : but Garns, and 
traps, are placed at every favourable point, so 
as to allow very few fish to ascend as far as 



IN NORWAY. 79 

Ormen, where they are effectually stopped by 
an insurmountable Foss. 

These various contrivances for the capture 
of the poor Salmon have greatly increased 
within the last few years, and have materially 
diminished the number of fish within the me- 
mory of men now living. All lament the grie- 
vous decrease, without being altogether willing 
to open their eyes to the evident cause. If they 
will not allow the fish to reach their spawning 
beds, or spear them with the Lyster, while 
helpless there, they only resemble the boy that 
killed his goose which layed him the golden 
eggs. In a country like Norway, where there 
are no game laws, no fence months, and where 
no mercy is shown to a spawning fish, or a bird 
on her nest, it is obviously the wild character 
of its mountains and streams alone, that 
preserves any of their respective tenants from 
utter extermination. If bounteous Nature did 
not protect her children, ruthless, avaricious 
man would soon effect their destruction. 



80 TWO SUMMERS 

From the middle of June to the end of July 
is the best season to fish the Rauma. The 
river, being fed by many Glaciers, will be 
found of so milkyish a hue as almost to deter 
an Angler unaccustomed to these Northern 
streams, from putting his rod together. Salmon 
will, however, most certainly take a large 
gaudy fly in snowy water. The same English- 
men before alluded to, killed on an average 
five or six Salmon a day, on two several visits 
to this river at the above mentioned season. 
The greater part were small, in comparison 
with those of the Namsen ; but a few weighed 
from twenty to thirty pounds. As far as I 
could learn, they were the only Anglers, except 
myself, who had ever cast a fly upon this water, 
except for trout. 

The best fishing water is somewhat confined; 
though enough to afford a few days' amuse- 
ment during the period that fresh fish are con- 
tinually running up from the sea. Many parts 
can be commanded by wading : at others there 



IN NORWAY. 81 

are a few very indifferent boats ; and an honest 
civil " Huusmand," wlio lives close by, will be 
ready to manage them, and point out the most 
likely spots. 

On my return the second day with my 
largest Salmon, expecting its size would draw 
forth some encomiums, I found it was quite 
eclipsed by two magnificent Flounders, that 
lay on the green before Fladmarf s house : they 
weighed upwards of a hundred weight each, 
and their captors were vainly endeavouring to 
sell them for a dollar, or four shillings a piece. 
I was told they are often taken with the hook, 
of thrice that size ! What a pull they must 
give ! And into what utter insignificance do 
even Namsen's salmonian monsters sink, in 
comparison ! 

The river being in flood from rain that had 
fallen during the night, I thought it would be 
a good opportunity to explore the lateral valley 
of the Ister, a smaller stream that joins the 
Rauma, about two miles from Veblungsnaes. A 
e 3 



82 TWO SUMMERS 

few Salmon ascend it: but it is too still, and too 
much encumbered with, alder bushes, to afford 
good Angling. It was, however, the scenery that 
lured me up its banks; and this amply repaid me. 

The valley, which is about six or seven miles 
long, penetrates into the very heart of the 
Broste Fjeld, whose snowy pinnacles are seen 
rising out of extensive Glaciers : the two high- 
est and finest peaks are called the " Sister 
Tinde." Below this region of eternal ice, a 
barrier of lofty rocks sweeps down from its 
aerial height, with a beautiful steep curve, into 
what has evidently been once the basin of a 
Lake, and is still in many parts little better than 
a marshy jungle, overgrown with the usual 
dwarf shrubs of Northern latitudes, and afford- 
ing secure refuge to numerous wild fowl. At 
the upper end is a considerable waterfall, fed 
by the Glaciers : it makes a good show from a 
distance, but when seen nearer, loses some of 
its effect from a talus of debris, which receives 
its silvery waters, instead of a gulf of rock : 



IN NORWAY. 83 

many other cascades, of lesser note, but much, 
beauty, leap over, or glide down, the mural 
rocks that embrace within their mighty arms 
the whole length of Isterdalen. 

This wild vale was, no long time ago, occu- 
pied by several permanent Gaards : they have 
all been given up, from the uncertainty of the 
crops' ripening; and it is only now used for 
summer pasturage. A few starved cottagers 
yet linger here, whom I could observe peeping 
stealthily from behind their half-closed doors at 
the stranger, who was so suspiciously examin- 
ing their ungenial glen, alone, and as it must 
seem to them, without rational object. 

Early on Thursday, September 5, I quitted 
my comfortable quarters at Veblungsnaes ; and 
drove to Madmark, the second stage up Roms- 
dalen, with the intention of ascertaining whe- 
ther the Salmon that had escaped the persecu- 
tions below, were to be met with there. Between 
Fladmark and Romsdals-Horn, the narrow 
Valley is filled with enormous blocks, con- 



84 TWO SUMMERS 

fusedly hurled down from the impending crags ; 
among which the roaring river tears its devious 
path, as best it can. Therefore, though an 
odd pool here and there may be found, there 
can be no continuous Angling : besides which, 
this wilderness of rock, though magnificent to 
see, almost defies passage, with rod in hand. 
Above Flaclmark (i. e. " The Flat Field/') the 
course of the river, as might be guessed from 
the name, is for a long way, much too still. 

However, immediately below the Inn, I ob- 
served an excellent stream, where, if anywhere, 
it was evident that Salmon must he. I there- 
fore tried it twice over, most carefully, from 
both sides, without seeing the slightest sign of 
a fish : besides which I learned that none had 
been taken in the Gam for several previous 
days. I also fished a pool or two lower down, 
with the same result ; which sufficiently con- 
vinced me of the utter uselessness of wasting 
any more of the few precious days of the 
waning season, at this river. 



IN NORWAY. 85 

Moreover, I had been smitten with a great 
desire to shoot a Reindeer. On my way from 
VeblungsnEes, I met a hunter with a couple of 
these animals that he had shot the preceding 
week, and which he was taking to the town to 
sell. And while speaking on this subject at 
Fladmark, I encountered another Chasseur, on 
his return to his home near the next Station, 
Ormen, with the intention of taking the Fjeld 
early the next morning. After some parley, 
I agreed to accompany him ; and accordingly 
drove over to Ormen, which he recommended 
as the best starting place. His name was Lars 
Larsen paa Stavem : and, as I subsequently 
discovered, he was obliging, active, trustworthy, 
well acquainted with the mountains, and pos- 
sessed of some tolerable notion of the chace ; 
but on the whole, rather more of the Bonder, 
than the J ager, of the honest Norwegian Far- 
mer, than the true Chamois-hunter of the Alps. 

Had I not already seen the still grander 
portion of the valley under Romsdals-Horn, 



86 TWO SUMMERS 

I should perhaps have been more impressed by 
the magnificence of this upper part. There is 
not a mile of it that does not abound with 
beauties of the very highest order. The general 
character was a very deep valley, of variable 
width, narrow below Fladmark, but consider- 
ably wider above ; finely hemmed in by mural 
precipices on either side, abounding in speci- 
mens of rocky scenery, unequalled out of Nor- 
way, and beautified with the usual Norwegian 
accompaniments of pine forests and waterfalls. 
At each turn of the road, were seen, high above 
all, the snowy ranges that afforded to these 
cascades their never failing supply; and that 
looked like the very home and father-land of 
the wild deer. These were the general fea- 
tures of the Vale: but the reader will easily un- 
derstand that there were a thousand details of 
grandeur ahd beauty; and if he have in his com- 
position any of my mountain ardour, he will not 
be slow to comprehend the delight I experienced 
in contemplating its rude magnificence. 



IN NORWAY. 87 

As we approached Ormen, the Valley be- 
came more contracted, and the ascent, which 
had hitherto been comparatively easy, was sen- 
sibly steeper. The Rauma here, after rushing 
through a long rocky gorge, so deep and nar- 
row, as completely to hide its boiling waters, 
falls at once from a considerable height into 
a dark chasm. Immediately below which, a 
scarcely smaller stream, from the opposite 
mountains, tumbling over the cliffs in several 
channels, forms so many beautiful cascades, 
at the point where it joins the main river : it 
is a grand scene, if not within the grasp of the 
painter, at least sure to gratify the lover of the 
picturesque. 

I found very indifferent accommodations at 
Ormen: and to my disappointment, could 
obtain nothing better than barley bread, 
cheese, and brandy, (all bad,) either for my 
dinner that evening, or for my expedition the 
next day. One needs to have something more 
substantial, when following the free denizens 



88 TWO SUMMERS 

of the mountain, over their native Fj elder. 
Nevertheless, I rose before daylight the next 
morning, feeling equal to any fatigue, and 
keenly anxious for the sport. I was soon join- 
ed by Lars ; and before five o' clock we started 
amid the half suppressed ridicule of the vil- 
lagers, at the idea of an Englishman expecting 
to shoot a Reindeer. I thought to myself that 
a man who had shot Chamois on the Alps and 
the Pyrenees, need not fear the mountains I 
saw before me : but aware that it is safer to 
boast on one's return than on setting out, I 
said nothing. 

For the first two hours we encountered a 
very laborious ascent up the steep cliffs that 
form the lower range. In one spot we saw 
recent traces of a bear : these animals are very 
numerous in Romsdalen. A fine Cock of the 
Woods also rose close by us ; and throughout 
the day we saw coveys of Ryper, as well as 
several Alpine hares, at which of course we 
did not fire, for fear of alarming the Reindeer, 



IN NORWAY. 89 

Upon surmounting this stiff ascent, we reached 
an elevated plateau, from which snow moun- 
tains rose on all sides to a farther height of 
2000 or 3000 feet. From this point, the walk- 
ing became easy enough to a mountaineer, 
and was never dangerous. Lars had no tele- 
scope, so indispensable to the Gems-jager: 
but unlike them, he was accompanied by a 
powerful dog, held in a leash; which, if well 
trained, is not only serviceable in retrieving 
wounded deer, but also winds them at aston- 
ishing distances, and by his movements adver- 
tises his master where they are. 

We traversed much likely ground, without 
seeing any thing more than the fresh tracks 
of three Deer in the snow, which, I suspect, 
had been disturbed by us, without our observing 
them. At length, about ten o' clock, we came 
to a sort of mountain glen, with a few isolated 
rocks projecting above the surrounding fields 
of ever-during ice ; in short, the very spot for 
a Chamois, or Reindeer. Here, to my very 



90 TWO SUMMERS 

great delight, I first discovered, with a small 
pocket telescope, a herd of seven Rein, four old 
does, and three well grown calves. They were 
at a considerable distance, but on the move 
towards us, feeding as they came, and totally 
unsuspicious of danger. 

For a long time, they were so placed as to 
render it impossible to approach them unper- 
ceived : but it was highly interesting to watch 
them as they cropped the scanty Alpine herbage 
that bears their name,* or crossed in lengthened 
file the steep sides of intervening Glaciers, every 
now and then stopping to listen for sound of 
fear, or to interrogate the gales if any enemy 
were at hand. The breeze fortunately blew 
briskly from them; and therefore could tell them 
nought of us : but our anxiety during all these 
processes may well be imagined, as two hours 
elapsed, before they mounted a rock that hid 
them from our sight. 



* Rensblomster. 



IN NORWAY. 91 

Leaving then the dog fastened to a stone, 
we ran across a Glacier, and climbing up a steep 
precipice as silently and rapidly as we could, 
crept to the spot where they had disappeared. 
We were now within 100 yards of them, feeding 
in perfect security. Lars had a rifle ; I had 
only a double barrelled gun, loaded with ball. 
In order, therefore, to insure at least one deer, 
I had previously told him to fire first : but I 
kept my eye upon him, and his shot was fol- 
lowed instantly by mine. From the position 
in which I lay, I could only command two full 
grown calves ; but they offered so fair a mark 
that it was impossible to miss them, and one 
dropped to my shot : Lars had also wounded 
another. The remaining five started in wild 
amaze : and as they bounded across, at about 
eighty yards' distance, I put my second ball 
through the leading doe, fracturing both her 
hind legs, close to the hip. 

Three Eeindeer thus fell to three barrels, 
within ten seconds, a feat seldom, if ever be- 



92 TWO SUMMERS 

fore achieved in these mountains. I must, 
however, confess that all three were clumsy 
shots, taking effect in the hinder parts of the 
animals : so that, though they were completely 
crippled, it took us some time to secure them 
all, in which we were ably assisted by our four- 
footed companion. My poor doe, in particular, 
managed to tumble or scramble down a pre- 
cipice, into a half frozen Lake, where she 
continued paddling about, until I sent a ball 
through her spine, and the wind soon wafted 
her lifeless to shore. 

To our very great surprise, we found upon 
examination, that one ear was slit, a sure sign 
that she had once belonged to the Finns, who 
thus mark their domesticated Reindeer. Now 
the nearest point to which that singular Noma- 
dic race ever come with their herds, even in 
summer, is upwards of 200 miles : and Lars 
Larsen, who had killed more than 100 deer, 
said he had never seen, or heard of, a Rein 
with the Lapp's mark upon it in these mourn- 



IN NORWAY. 93 

tains before. She had become completely wild 
again, to all intents ; and from her taking the 
lead in their flight, was evidently acknowledged 
to be the strongest and most courageous of 
the party. We gutted and washed our victims 
on the spot ; and then placed them under heavy 
heaps of stones, to protect them from the various 
birds and beasts of prey, that frequent this 
chain, such as the Bear and the Wolf, the 
Lynx (Gaupe) the Wolverine, or Glutton (J&rv) 
until Lars could return with a horse and friends 
to take them home. 

The Reindoe, it is well known, is equally 
furnished with horns, as the male : but they 
were at this season too velvety, and not full- 
sized ; I, therefore, preferred for my trophy the 
three pair of fore legs, which I was proud, on 
my return, to display to my sneering friends 
at Ormen, and was evidently looked up to with 
more respect, in consequence of my success. 
The foot of the Reindeer is beautifully adapted 
to its mode of life and habitat. It has the same 



94 TWO SUMMERS 

raised hard edge, that gives the Chamois so 
secure a footing on the narrowest ledge of rock ; 
at the same time it is capable of great dilatation, 
to prevent the animal from sinking in the soft 
snow, that so commonly forms its path. 

We were favoured with snch heavenly wea- 
ther, as enabled us to see the surrounding 
snow ranges to the greatest advantage. And 
though the eye and heart at once confessed they 
were not upon the scale of those with which in 
earlier years my passion for Chamois-hunting 
made me familiar, yet did I feel and acknow- 
ledge in them also, the impress of lonely ma- 
jesty stamped by the Divine Architect on these 
eternal monuments of His Power, which to my 
taste, no other earthly work of the All Power- 
ful and All Good can boast. 

I felt myself a little stiff, but not much tired, 
the next morning, when I started for Lessoe, 
on my way into Guldbrandsal. The upper part 
of Romsdal exceeds in wildness any thing I had 
hitherto seen : the mural precipices that confine 



IN NORWAY. 95 

the Valley, with the scanty corn fields in the 
centre, entirely disappear, and the road climbs 
over a succession of broken, rocky ascents, 
many of which might be avoided by better en- 
gineering. Hard as these Gneiss rocks are, 
however, the river has worn them into chasms 
of extraordinary depth, at the bottom of which 
its seething waters foam and boil, and whirl 
round and round in ceaseless turmoil, until 
at length they effect their escape by bounds 
and leaps that shake the foundations of the 
everlasting hills. 

There are innumerable details of savage 
magnificence, that might each suffice to confer 
interest on a day's excursion ; but which, per- 
haps from their very multitude, can scarcely 
be appreciated, or retained, as they deserve. 
In many spots I observed some remarkably 
aged Scotch Firs, of great girth, and pictur- 
esque spread of limb, though not lofty. At a 
place called Bjorneklev, between Brude and 
Nystuen, two torrents of nearly equal volume, 



96 TWO SUMMERS 

the Hauma and the XJlva, form fine cascades, 
as they descend suddenly from a higher stage 
of this mountain glen. This is so wild a pass, 
that the Scotch under Colonel Sinclair, who 
perished at Kringelen, in 1612, (as before al- 
luded to,) did not dare any longer to follow the 
road, but are said to have taken to the moun- 
tains, and not to have come down again till 
they reached Eneboe, in Lessoe. 

The interest of my drive through Homsdalen 
was much increased by the traditions connected 
with this expedition, so celebrated in Norwe- 
gian annals. A thousand stories, each surpass- 
ing the other in strangeness and improbability 
are still rife in the valley. Many of them are 
preserved in a rude ballad, popular among 
the peasants, which has been poetically para- 
phrased by the well known Edward Storm. 
But lest, any details should perish of a deed of 
arms considered so honourable to Norway, 
my friend the Priest of Vaage, in which Parish 
Kringelen is situated, has collected them into 



IN NORWAY. 



97 



a little brochure,* which he kindly presented 
to me. 

It seems that during the short war between 
Denmark and Sweden, that is usually called 
the War of Calmar, the youthful Gustavus 
Adolphus raised about 2000 troops in Scotland. 
The main body, under Munkhaven, after 
making an ineffectual attempt to surprise 
Trondhjem, safely reached Sweden, by way 
of Stordalen. Meanwhile Sinclair's division, 
variously estimated at from 250 to 800 men, 
landed in Eomsdalen, in July 1612 : and hav- 
ing seized a man, named Peder Klognses, to act 
as guide, advanced up this savage valley, com- 
mitting deeds at least as savage, if the Bonder's 
ballad may be believed. Most of the peasants, 
however, took the precaution of removing them- 

* " Sagn samledei Guldbransdalen om Slaget ved Kringelen, 
den 26de August, 1612, og udgivne i Forbindelse med hvad 
Historien beretter om denne Tildragelse." That is, " Traditions 
collected in Guldbrandsdal, respecting the Fight at Kringelen, 
the 26th of August, 1612, and published in connexion with 
what history relates of this event.' ' 



VOL. II. 



F 



98 TWO SUMMERS 

selves and valuables into the mountains, where 
as they sat perched on their inaccessible cliffs, 
it is said they were assailed by opprobrious epi- 
thets and threats, which seem to attest a greater 
proficiency in Norsk than one can imagine the 
Scotch to have attained. 

At some farms they found provisions laid out 
for them; and there they usually showed mercy: 
but other houses they fired. The narrowness 
of the Valley, divided by the impassable chasms 
of the II aura a, in many spots afforded opportu- 
nity for taking a perfectly safe shot at the in- 
vaders : of which the Dalesmen failed not to 
take advantage. Amongst others, in this man- 
ner they killed two Turks, whom veracious tra- 
dition affirms Sinclair had brought with him to 
hunt out the concealed natives, as they could 
infallibly scent out Christian blood, unless their 
olfactory nerves were deranged by the smell of 
hemp, or of sour milk ! Modern interpreters 
explain these "wild Turks " to have been 
Bloodhounds. 



IN NORWAY. 99 

Not, however, to dwell on these traditions, 
of which each Gaard, and each Pass, retains 
its stock, the Highlanders reached Guidbrands- 
dal, where they naturally thought themselves 
in comparative safety. The military were all ab- 
sent fighting against the Swedes : but the pea- 
sants of the surrounding vallies had collected 
at Kringelen, below Laurgaard, and prepared 
an ambuscade, which was so well chosen, that 
while they lost only half a dozen men,* they 
destroyed the whole of this disciplined force, 
except a few whom they shot in cold blood the 
next day, as " they could not (so says their own 
ballad) bear the cost so hard," of supporting 
them, or conveying them to prison. Kragh, 
however, asserts, that a few did after all escape. 

The movements of the concealed Bonder 
were directed by a peasant girl, named Pillar - 

* The fight, if such it must be called, took place on 26th 
August, 1612; the monument erected on the spot says, Au- 
gust 24 ; but Priest Kragh shows from better authorities that 
it was the 26th. 



100 TWO SUMMERS 

Guri, famed in Doler song, who from a lofty 
crag which commanded the Pass, gave no- 
tice of the Scots' advance, , by modulations 
on her Alpine horn. The first shot passed 
through Colonel Sinclair's forehead, killing 
him dead on the spot : but he is said to have 
yet had time and strength to exclaim, " That is 
Berdon of SeielstadV shot \" Without advert- 
ing to the curious medical question concerned 
therewith, it seems difficult to understand how 
these strangers, who had been but a month in 
the country were so familiar not only with the 
language, but with individuals. 

I should mention that Sinclair having the 
reputation of a wizard, Berdon chewed the 
silver buckle he wore, and therewith formed 
the bullet that did the deed: lead or iron 
having no effect on the Highlander's charmed 
body. Poor Mrs. Sinclair was also therewith 
an infant in her arms : both were killed, and 
thrown into the adjoining Biver Laag ; but as 
she floated down the stream, she is said to have 



IN NORWAY. 101 

composed and sung, a wild air, which is still 
preserved. And such things are not only 
reported among the peasants, but are gravely 
recorded in print ! It is difficult to account 
for the national enthusiasm respecting this 
petty episode : Norway has many prouder days 
to boast, than " the fight by Kringelen." 

To return, however, from this long digression, 
to Bjorneldev, at the head of Romsdalen. 
Upon emerging from this wild pass which so 
alarmed Sinclair and his stalwart Highlanders, 
the road runs for some miles through a flat 
arid open valley, that occupies the summit 
level between Romsdalen and Lessoe. Its 
elevation is about 2000 feet above the sea : 
the scenery from henceforward is nevertheless, 
with few exceptions, very tame in comparison 
with that already described. The roads are 
also abominably kept ; for which the only ex- 
cuse that can be made is the paucity and 
poverty of the inhabitants. 

Corn is attempted to be grown here : but it 



102 TWO SUMMERS 

is evidently beyond the limits permitted by 
Nature ; for this is the fifth successive summer 
that the crops have been totally destroyed by 
early frosts. The consequent distress may be 
faintly imagined : the poorer farmers have 
already parted with every thing disposable, to 
purchase a little food, and they have nothing 
now but starvation staring them in the face. 
It is a curious fact, that frost is never known 
in Romsdalen at even higher altitudes than 
are constantly exposed to it every autumn in 
Lessoe. 

At Nystuen, I met with an adventure that 
had nearly put a fatal termination to my Tour. 
A young colt of two years old was there given 
me for my carriole, which had rarely, if ever, 
been in any kind of harness before. It was 
as may be supposed, extremely awkward at 
starting'; but long experience had given me 
such confidence in these little animals, that I 
doubted not I should be able to manage it. 

However, at the very first descent, directly 



IN NORWAY. 103 

that it felt the pressure of the carriole, the 
half wild creature sprang uncontrollably for- 
wards, like the Reindeer of the previous day ; 
then reared, and struck out with his fore-legs, 
snorting and shaking his head : and finally, 
just as I jumped out, fairly leaped over the 
slight fence on the lower side of the road, a 
sheer fall of at least ten or twelve feet, whence 
horse and carriole bounded three or four times 
over, down a steep precipice towards the River; 
until they were fortunately stopped by some 
stumps and bushes. 

At the very moment that the frantic animal 
sprang over the fence, I had the long reins 
so entangled about my legs that I thought I 
must inevitably be dragged down with it. I 
scarcely know how I escaped : I can just re- 
member throwing myself on my back, and 
shuffling the reins off as well as I could : but 
never shall I forget the sentiment of thank- 
fulness to Him who has so often preserved me 
during a very adventurous life, which thrilled 



104 TWO SUMMERS 

my breast, as I saw my vehicle somerseting 
down this frightful place. Every thing, I felt 
convinced, must be broken to pieces : but how 
little did that matter, in comparison with the 
merciful preservation I had experienced ! 

However when we came to examine, we 
found one shaft broken in two or three places; 
but this, with a few minor fractures and 
scratches, was the sum total of damage. Three 
bottles that were in a case attached to the 
splash-board, were not even cracked : and yet 
the equipage had tumbled forty or fifty feet, 
. and performed at least three complete somer- 
sets ! The cause of the disaster, too, stood 
confined by the harness to the stump of a tree, 
as quiet as a lamb, and trembling violently 
from head to foot ; but without the slightest 
injury of any kind ! It seemed incredible. 

With -some difficulty we got the light little 
carriage up into the road ; and while my ser- 
vant was engaged in temporarily repairing the 
damage, I returned to Nystuen, and entered 



IN NORWAY. 105 

a temperate complaint in the best Norsk I 
could command ; for which, I doubt not, the 
Farmer would be fined, as he amply deserved 
to be, for supplying so unfit a beast. When 
I consider the variety of horses I drove in 
Norway, and the perilous roads I traversed, it 
is wonderful that I have not more dangerous 
accidents to record. 

The scenery was seldom calculated to with- 
draw my meditations from my late escape : 
the vale was open, flat, and boggy : the hills 
comparatively low, and sweeping tamely down 
into it : those looking to the North were clothed 
with undisturbed pine forests; those with a 
Southern aspect were diversified with a few 
scattered Gaards. The summit of this moun- 
tain plain is occupied by a considerable Lake, 
which offers the singularity (not unparalleled 
in Norway) of a copious stream flowing con- 
stantly from both ends, which are of course at 
exactly the same level. 

Close by its Eastern termination are exten- 
f 3 



108 TWO SUMMERS 

sive buildings, the remains of some iron works, 
which were given up some twenty years ago, in 
consequence of the failure of fuel. At this 
season, large trout ascend the streams of the 
old works, from the Lake of Lessoe, for the 
purpose of spawning ; and are killed with the 
Lyster as much as twelve pounds in weight. 
There seemed to be a tolerable Inn ; where I 
could have been content to stay a day or two, 
for the purpose of trying whether the fish 
would take the fly here, but my arrangements 
did not permit me to do so. Near the next 
station, Holseth, at the head of Lessoe Lake, 
great numbers of fine trout and grayling are 
also caught in the autumn; and at another 
stream, a little to the Southward, named 
LaardaFs Elv, still more and larger fish are 
said to be taken : the Inn at Holseth seemed 
to be indifferent. The next day being the 
Sabbath, prevented my giving these rivers a 
trial: I doubt not they would amply reward 
the Angler that will try them at this season, 



IN NORWAY. 107 

when the trout leave the deeper waters of the 
Lakes. 

From Holseth I drove along the Northern 
shores of LessSe Vand to Holager, where I 
took up my quarters. The contrast between 
the two shores of this Lake is great, the South- 
ern side is rocky, steep, and left nearly in a 
state of nature : while that through which I 
had passed, slopes more gradually towards the 
water, and consists of a deep, stiff clay, covered 
with corn fields and Gaards. They have a cus- 
tom here, which I have only elsewhere re- 
marked in Dovre Praestegjeld, of placing the 
sheaves of corn to dry against double rows of 
hurdles, called Shegars, instead of the usual 
upright poles described by Laing. This is ac- 
counted for by the very high winds that harry 
through this transverse Valley from the Dovre 
Fjeld to the Western Ocean. 

I had a pretty good sample of the violence 
of these winds. On Sunday, September 8, it 
blew a perfect hurricane, accompanied by driv- 



108 TWO SUMMERS 

ing rain, so as to detain me within doors ; and 
when I sallied forth, the next morning, it had 
not much moderated. However, in spite of a 
blustering east wind, I embarked with my 
landlord on the Lake ; and fished down to 
its termination, about an English mile. I 
caught on my way four trout of three-quarters 
of a pound each ; but it was evident that most 
of them had retired into the streams. Earlier 
in the season, I am confident from all I saw and 
heard, that this Lake must afford excellent 
trout-fishing. 

I then tried the stream that issues from the 
Lake : and here, to my surprise, I not only 
found several boys angling with worm, but one 
man fly-fishing. He had picked up a little of 
the art from some Englishmen ; his tackle and 
performances were alike rude : however he 
failed not to spoil one or two of the best places. 
I fished down for about a couple of miles. I 
met with a succession of beautiful streams ; and 
besides a vast number of small trout and gray- 



IN NORWAY. 109 

ling, rose several of two and three pounds. 
I caught three of the former, and one of the 
latter weight; and on a shallow some way down 
killed a fine trout of seven pounds, which for 
some short time fought and struggled like a 
Salmon. 

I saw enough to convince me, that in right 
weather and season, capital sport may be had 
here ; and, perhaps, still better at the head of 
the Lake. There are also many Lakes at various 
distances in the mountains, containing large 
and well flavoured trout : and the landlord of 
Holager has a portable boat on purpose for 
such expeditions. 

In the first stage Southward the next day, 
I crossed a good stream, issuing from the 
Siouge Vand, as pure as crystal, between two 
regular walls of sandstone rock : it is celebrated 
for its trout, but the lower part at least seemed 
too torrenty for the Angler. I then joined the 
road over the Dovre Fjeld, a little above Lien ; 
and thus again entered Guldbrandsdal, which 



110 TWO SUMMERS 

appeared doubly soft and beautiful after the 
sterner features of the scenery, with which I 
had so long been conversant. The reach of the 
river Laugen, from Lien to Tofte, is, both from 
character and appearance, by far the best 
adapted for fly-fishing of any part of that river; 
below Tofte it becomes too broad and still ; and 
lower down, near Sell, the waters from the 
Otte Vand, always turbid from the melting 
Glaciers, completely discolour it for many 
miles, so as to put any attempt with the fly out 
of the question. 

I will not, however, dwell upon any more pis- 
catory details, which I would rather reserve for 
a separate Chapter. I passed with delight un- 
diminished along the lovely Eastern shore of 
Lake Mjosen: and for the second time entered 
Christiania from Eaaholt, in the same abomin- 
able weather, so common at this season. I 
mention the weather, because it both times 
rendered the road as nearly impassable as can 
be conceived. For nearly forty miles it was one 



IN NORWAY. Ill 

eternal wade through unfathomable sludge, 
where I was only assured of tlie fact of there 
being any bottom at all, by bumping against 
the huge stones therein engulfed. All the 
roads round Christiania are disgraceful to the 
vicinity of a capital ; but this surpasses them 
all : it is difficult to say whether the strength 
of the poor beasts, or the philosophy of the 
driver, be the most severely taxed. 



112 



TWO SUMMERS 



CHAPTER X. 

General description of the Scandinavian Lakes and Rivers — 
Salmon Rivers of Norway : The Alten ; the Guul ; and 
minor Rivers ; the Siva ; Rauma ; Bergen Streams ; the 
Mandal, &c. — Laaven, near Laurvig — Falkenberg — Rivers 
on the Bothnian Gulf — Trout Streams of Norway ; of 
Sweden — Flies and Tackle — Advice to Anglers. 

In addition to the scattered notices dispersed 
throughout these pages, it may, perhaps, be 
acceptable to the Angler, if I here give a gene- 
ral description of the piscatory capabilities of 
Scandinavia. Not that I pretend to be ac- 
quainted with each of its thousand Rivers, and 
ten thousand Lakes; but at any rate I can, 
either from my own experience, or from trust- 
worthy information, give some account of the 
principal streams, that will prove useful to the 
stranger, and which at least I know I should 



IN NORWAY. 113 

have been thankful to obtain, when I first came 
into the country. I will take care to record 
nothing, except from personal knowledge, or 
from authority that may be depended upon. 

The number and size of the Norwegian 
Rivers strikes an Englishman at first as extra- 
ordinary for the extent of the country. This 
impression may partly arise from the roads 
being necessarily carried along the banks of 
the largest streams and lakes; but there can be 
no doubt that they are much more numerous 
than in a flatter and more Southern Land. 
Norway consists entirely of mountains, covered 
for the most part with deep snow, which during 
the hot, though brief Summer, pours down 
inexhaustible supplies of water into the Vallies. 
The spongy nature of the lower mountains, and 
the inequalities of the surface, sufficiently ex- 
plain the abundance of Lakes. 

The rocks, over which the Rivers run, be- 
long to the hardest, subciystalline, primary 
family : and the fall is usually very great. It 



114 TWO SUMMERS 

is, therefore, to be expected that their course 
should be extremely rapid, often tumultuous; 
and that they should frequently be crossed 
by barriers, forming what in Norsk are called 
Fosses. This same rocky character of their 
beds renders the rivers of Norway less suited 
for trout, than for Salmon. There are no 
worms, or larvse, or insects brought down by 
each flood to feed the former: while Salmon 
seeking little or no food, in the fresh waters, 
which they frequent only for the purposes of 
continuing their race, delight in the pure cool- 
ness of these pellucid streams. 

Accordingly, there are scarcely any Norwe- 
gian rivers of proper size that Salmon do not 
enter. And they would, doubtless, be all even 
better supplied than they are with this noble 
fish, if it were not for the Fosses which too 
many of the largest rivers have near their 
mouths, and which prevent the Salmon from 
ascending, on their annual passage from the 
sea, to their spawning beds. This is most 



IN NORWAY. 115 

lamentably the case with the Glommen, the 
Gotha, the Drammen, and the Skeen Rivers : 
in fact with all of any consequence that empty 
themselves into the Fjord of Christiania, except 
the Laurvig river. When it is seen on the 
Map what an enormous proportion of the 
drainage of Eastern Norway, and Western 
Sweden enters the sea by these magnificent 
channels, it will be understood what a grievous 
loss to the Angler it is, that those splendid 
Falls of Trollhsettan, Sarpfoss, and Hogsund, 
are not further removed from the mouths of 
their respective rivers. All the many streams 
that feed the vast Wenern, the Mjosen, the 
Randsfjord, and others, are thereby deprived 
of their noblest inhabitant. 

To begin with the Northernmost point. The 
establishment of a steamboat at Trondhjem, 
which sails every fortnight to Hammerfest, 
has rendered a voyage to the Arctic Circle 
comparatively easy : therefore the Angler who 
may be tempted to admire the sun at midnight, 



116 TWO SUMMERS 

or to stand on the North Cape, will not be 
sorry to learn that there is a good Salmon 
river, at Alten, a little to the South of Ham- 
merfest. I know from Englishmen who have 
tried it, that large fish are occasionally caught 
there : at the same time, as an English com- 
pany has long been established at Alten for 
the purpose of working the neighbouring 
mines, I presume the river is pretty well 
fished. However, from all the accounts I have 
received, the society of these gentlemen will 
amply compensate for any inconvenience of 
their rivalry. 

I am not aware that any of the rivers be- 
tween the Alten and Namsen have ever been 
fished with fly : though there can be little 
doubt they all, more or less, contain Salmon. 
Of the Namsen itself, and the neighbouring 
streams, ,the reader will think that I have 
already said enough. The Bangsund river is 
frequented by a fair number of Salmon and 
sea trout ; but it is not well adapted for An- 



IN NORWAY. 117 

gling, even if any one could be induced to 
delay at a third rate stream, when so near to 
the King of Salmon waters. I have recorded 
my opinion of the Steenkjaer, and other rivers, 
that fall into the Trondhjem Fjord. 

In addition to the hints before given, I need 
only further mention, that in consequence 
of Mr. Laing's description, I was induced 
to make an excursion for two or three days 
into Vserdal, where he had a Farm, close below 
a Foss that stops the Salmon from ascending 
higher. I rose but three small Grilse ; and 
though a few fish may occasionally be caught, 
I am satisfied that great sport can never be 
had here : netting is extensively practised. 
The Valley itself however is well worth visiting, 
and the Gaard where I lodged, Ostgrund, was 
particularly comfortable. At a very picturesque 
Fall, about three miles higher up the Valley, 
I hooked several fine trout : and if I had been 
better prepared for trolling, I ought to have 
had much greater success. 



118 TWO SUMMERS 

The Nid, under Leerfoss, whatever it may 
have been formerly, I do not now consider 
worth fishing, unless for the sake of enjoying 
the beauty of the scenery, and the converse of 
the intelligent proprietor. 

By far the best river in the North of Norway, 
next to the Namsen, is the Guul; which one 
Englishman, who fished it for several summers, 
and was well qualified to judge, even preferred 
to its great Northern rival. It is much smaller, 
so as to be in general commandable with a long 
rod by wading : the fish also are not so large, 
a thirty pound Salmon, being at least as rare 
as one of forty pounds in the Namsen. I have 
merely tried it en passant, never under very 
favourable auspices, and only near Hogstad. 
But the gentleman alluded to staid on its banks 
more than one season for six weeks ; and is 
universally said to have had excellent sport. 

My lists will show what I did, in indifferent 
weather : I can at least attest that it is a re- 
markably pretty Angling River, and that the 



IN NORWAY. 119 

Valley is one of the most pleasingly picturesque 
I ever saw. Rogstad is the best quarter : but 
on my way to Roraas, I observed for many 
miles higher up a beautiful succession of 
streams and tempting pools : which so pleased 
my eye that if at any time I were driven off 
from the Namsen by the superabundance of 
rivals, it is undoubtedly on the banks of the 
Guul that I should take refuge. 

Of the Orke and Suren I have said sufficient 
in the last Chapter, to give the Angler an idea 
of their qualities. On the Totals Elv (at the 
head of the same Fjord into which the Suren 
flows) there is a Foss, near its mouth, which 
prevents any Salmon from entering it. But at 
Etovi, somewhat further to the North, are two 
rivers frequented by Salmon ; in which, I was 
assured by a native of the place (whom to my 
surprise I found bargaining for artificial flies 
in Trondhjem) that two Finns caught many 
large fish a year ago, with very rude tackle. 
Heevi lying not far from one of the roads to 



120 TWO SUMMERS 

Hitter en, it is just possible that a sportsman 
in pursuit of the Red deer, for which that 
island is so famous, might take these rivers 
on his way, and be glad to learn what chance 
of sport they afford. 

The next river, as we advance Southwards, 
is the Driva. A few Salmon, I know, ascend 
it, as far even as Drivstuen ; but the greater 
number are stopped by weirs near Lonset : I 
cannot speak from experience, whether lower 
down there be good Angling, but should ima- 
gine it to be at least as good a stream as the 
Rauina. 

Of the Siva River, which falls into the Lange 
Fjord, opposite to Eidsvog, I heard so tempting 
a description from a sergeant who resides 
there, that nothing but invincible obstacles 
prevented me from giving it a trial. He in- 
formed me that there is no Foss to hinder the 
Salmon from ascending to the very sources 
of this mountain stream, which in its course 
passes through three considerable Lakes, full 



IN NORWAY. 121 

of large trout, grayling, and Char. He also 
said there are pike here : but if he be correct 
as to the character of the fish, it is the only 
instance I am aware of, in these parts, of the 
existence of that tyrant among the finny tribe. 
No Angler has ever cast a line here : the Sal- 
mon are caught in considerable numbers by a 
sort of weir ; which however is not allowed to 
cross the entire stream. 

Next follows the Rauma, for the character 
of which I need only refer to the last Chapter. 
Besides the Ister, which I have also there 
mentioned, there is a small stream at the 
extremity of the Fjord, near Heinden, fre- 
quented by Salmon : however, my two English 
friends, before mentioned, not only killed no 
fish in it, but met with a very unpleasant re- 
ception from the natives, who seem to have 
misunderstood their object. 

The only Rivers that I have personally 
examined along the Western coast, South of 
Romsdalen, are those at Skjolden and Leir- 

VOL. II. G 



122 TWO SUMMERS 

dalsoren. But I have seen and heard enough, 
of the others to give a tolerably correct general 
idea of their capabilities. From the conforma- 
tion of the Norwegian Continent, (the moun- 
tains rapidly increasing in elevation as they 
approach the "Western sea,) the rivers on that 
coast are all comparatively short in their course, 
and their waters remain in a more or less 
turbid state, until the very end of summer; 
that is, until the snows that feed them, 
have entirely disappeared, or the sun has no 
longer power to thaw them. Good Salmon 
fishing cannot therefore be expected : though 
I have heard of some being caught in one or 
two of the Bergen rivers, and at Fretton; 
and doubtless a few fish might be killed 
there, sufficient to interest a Tourist who ex- 
plores that most magnificent district for its 
scenery, but far from enough to tempt any 
one thither merely for the Angling. 

It is very possible there may be some tole- 
rable Salmon rivers, between Stavanger and 



IN NORWAY. 123 

Mandal, as the mountains recede from the 
coast : I can only say I never heard of such. 
Sir Humphrey Davy has spoken of the Rivers 
at Mandal, Christiansand, and Arendal ; in 
all of which he saw Salmon rise, but never 
caught any, being there for a very short time 
and in unfavourable weather. He, however, 
caught a great many sea trout, which he 
says abound in the Southern streams, whereas 
they are far from being plentiful in the North. 
The Mandal is usually considered the best of 
these rivers, though somewhat spoiled by saw- 
mills. At Skeen, there is unfortunately a Foss 
that hinders Salmon from ascending its fine 
and copious stream. 

But incomparably the best Salmon river 
in these parts, and perhaps the second in all 
Scandinavia, is that near Laurvig, the Laaven, 
the same that passes by Kongsberg. It is 
not many years since its full merits were ascer- 
tained : but several Englishmen who have 
lately tried that part of it near Staberod (where 
g2 



124 TWO SUMMERS 

the great Southern road crosses it) which 
abounds with favourable rapids, have had ex- 
cellent sport. I fear that at all these Southern 
rivers, the Angler will not only meet with more 
rivals among his own countrymen, but also 
more impediments from the natives, than on 
those of the extreme North, where I have 
chiefly fished. 

I have already alluded to there being no 
good Salmon rivers on either side of the Fjord 
of Christiania: I may add that, with the 
trifling exception of the stream at Jonserud, 
above Gothaborg, there are none along the 
whole Western coast of Sweden, until we come 
to Falkenberg. Sir H. Davy also fished this 
river, and had what he considered a good day's 
sport, (" Salmonia," page 142,) but others 
have had much better. The principal feeders 
of Falkenbergs An flow out of low hills, from 
which the snow early disappears ; so that it 
is usually in order by the latter end of April. 
I know a gentleman who during the whole 



IN NORWAY. 125 

month of May, last year, averaged upwards of 
fifty pounds in weight each day, previously to 
the young Grilse making their appearance in 
the river. From his list, the fish seemed rarely 
at that season to be under seven pounds, still 
more rarely above twenty pounds. The worst 
is, that the Angling water is very confined, 
extending little more than a quarter of a mile ; 
in which there is one good pool worth all 
the rest. A staked and bound weir allows 
scarcely any fish to pass : and those caught 
by the Angler must be surrendered to the pro- 
prietor, or paid for, more Scotico. 

Salmon are taken at Halmstad and Laholm : 
indeed Copenhagen is chiefly supplied from 
those rivers : but I do not believe they are 
suited to Angling. The Southern portion of 
Sweden, Scania, &c. contains no streams 
wherein any fish better than an eel, or pike, 
will live. 

All the Swedish rivers, however, which 
empty themselves into the Bothnian Gulf, 



126 TWO SUMMERS 

contain abundance of Salmon. It has been 
estimated that from Tornea to Stockholm, there 
are at least fifty considerable rivers, many of 
them exceedingly large, every one of which 
is frequented by Salmon. Unfortunately, the 
Western shore of the Bothnian Gulf is so 
flat for a long distance inland, that the univer- 
sal character of these streams is too sluggish, 
too deep, too muddy, for the fly fisher ; offering, 
in short, as great a contrast as can be imagined 
to the gigantic torrents of Norway, and much 
rather resembling the Gotha above Gothaborg. 

Vast quantities of fish are taken in nets by 
the natives ; and I cannot doubt that they may 
be killed with the fly, by a competent Angler, 
who will pursue any suitable river up to the hills 
where its earlier course is spent, and where it 
must form the rapid streams and roomy pools 
that delight the Salmon fisher. This at least 
I know, that in two or three instances, where 
a very inadequate trial was made, with very 
insufficient means, the success was enough to 



IN NORWAY. 127 

prove that good sport might be had with better 
means and appliances to boot. I much wish 
that some really accomplished Angler would 
try a few of the best rivers of Northern Swe- 
den : and by choosing his points well, where 
the hills come near to the coast, and by arming 
himself with proper information, I have every 
confidence he would enjoy a most capital 
summer's fishing, in waters almost unknown 
to Anglers. 

Having never visited that district, I do not 
like to risk misleading my reader as to the most 
favourable spots, by mentioning my crude ideas : 
but I can at least assure him from trustworthy 
information that he will find the Angermann 
River, a little to the North of Hernosand, 
well worthy his attention; especially from Hull- 
sta to Hamra, near which latter place is an 
extensive Sawing establishment, from whose 
proprietors I am much mistaken if he will 
not meet with every possible assistance and 
attention. 



128 TWO SUMMERS 

The Salmon of these rivers are said to be 
extraordinarily well fed, short, and fat : winch 
is attributed to their feeding on a particular 
kind of small fish abundant in the brackish 
waters of this landlocked Gulf. Grayling 
also abound, as likewise fine perch in certain 
rivers : and in all the mountain Lakes are 
magnificent Char, which take the fly well, 
wherever a tolerably sharp stream enters. The 
accommodations, however, and living, become 
detestable even for Scandinavia, immediately 
that the traveller quits the great roads. 

Having cast this brief coup d'oeil over the Sal- 
mon Rivers of Scandinavia, let us return for a 
moment to Norway, and give a few general hints 
as to what the trout fisher may expect there. It 
would be useless, even if I were capable of it, 
to particularize one half of the Rivers and 
Lakes of this well watered country, all of which, 
as far as my experience extends, contain trout 
more or less plentifully. Yet I scarcely know 
how to point out the best places where first-rate 



IN NORWAY. 129 

trout fishing may be insured. The truth is, 
that Salmon being my chief object, I have never 
gone out of my way, or devoted much time, in 
pursuit of trout. The summer is so brief, and 
the distances so great, that it is impossible for 
one ambitious of fishing the Northern rivers to 
waste many of the precious days of the fleeting 
season, in exploring unknown streams. 

I have accordingly fished only such Lakes 
and Rivers as came in my way, which either 
from information or appearance promised to 
afford sport ; and I tried few for more than an 
hour or two : my list will show with what suc- 
cess. My sport was frequently good, consider- 
ing the adverse circumstances under which I 
fished ; but it was scarcely enough to repay an 
Angler who should come from England mainly 
for trout fishing. Such an one, however, 
would, I doubt not, in any part of Norway, 
very soon surpass my performances, if he gave 
himself a little trouble to acquire information, 
and to resort to the most favourable points. 
g 3 



180 TWO SUMMERS 

It shall be my object now to give such hints 
as I think likely to be generally useful. The 
first enemy to the Angler in Norway is snow- 
water : I have learned by experience that Sal- 
mon will take the fly in rivers discoloured by 
melting snow; but not so trout. The higher 
mountains of central Norway should, therefore, 
be avoided until summer be far advanced : and 
even among the hills of the South, the streams 
are rarely in tolerable order until the middle of 
May ; more frequently it is Midsummer before 
any good sport can be expected. 

Large rivers are also objectionable : they 
seldom contain so plentiful a supply of trout 
as smaller streams, except at certain Eapids, or 
Fosses : while but a small portion of them can 
be commanded with the rod. By far the best 
for the Angler are moderately sized streams, 
that pass through Lakes of similar dimensions : 
the fish fatten and attain great weight in the 
still water, and at favourable times come into 
the streams to feed and enjoy the fresher ele- 



IN NORWAY. 131 

ment. It is this very character that makes the 
chain of Lakes near Jerkin so good, where 
though I have never taken fish above three 
pounds, I have seen them spring of double 
that size. 

The heaviest trout will invariably be found 
lying at the foot of Falls, especially if the Fall 
is situated a little above an extensive Lake ; as 
in the case of Hundfoss between Lillehammer 
and Moshuus. Numbers of large trout collect 
there in the Autumn, and are taken occasion- 
ally up to thirty pounds in weight, in a kind of 
trap. The body of water is so vast and tumul- 
tuous, as not to afford any Angling to my taste, 
but a gentleman of my acquaintance killed here 
on one afternoon of September, two trout of 
fifteen pounds each, with the fly. I feel quite 
certain that both here, and at other similar 
Fosses, the troll would answer far better for 
these monsters, than the fly: but not liking 
that mode of Angling (killing, as it confessedly 
is, for large fish) I have seldom tried it. 



/ 



132 TWO SUMMERS 

I cannot say that I observed any marked 
peculiarity in the flies adapted to the Norwe- 
gian Waters ; except that perhaps the palmers 
did not answer so well, as the winged flies. I 
usually found the best Scotch Lake flies the 
most successful : a well made Scotch "Profes- 
sor/' if of the right size, will kill anywhere. 

The whole of the extreme South of Norway 
abounds with good Angling lakes and streams : 
as for instance, the neighbourhood of Chris- 
tiansand, and Arendal. The district of Telle- 
ni ark en, round the Gousta Fjeld, has long 
been celebrated not only for the exquisite pic- 
turesqueness of its scenery, but for the excel- 
lence and abundance of its trout. An English 
Angler, of the name of Hutchinson, long resi- 
dent in Drammen, has this year (1839) pub- 
lished a little Treatise on Fly-fishing, for the 
express use of the natives.* He seems to speak 

* " Fluefiskeriets Anvendelse i Norge i.e. The practice of 
Fly-fishing in Norway ; by Robert D. Hutchinson, Drammen, 
1839. It is accompanied by well executed plates, explanatory 



IN NORWAY. 



of Wigersund, near Modum, and Lake Sperild 
(through which the Beina flows in its course 
from Valders) as two of the best waters for 
trout in that neighbourhood. But he must be 
by far the best qualified of any one, to give 
accurate information as to the piscatory capa- 
bilities of this portion of Norway ; and which, 
I doubt not, he would be happy to communi- 
cate to any brother Angler, who should pro- 
perly apply to him. 

The Beina, as well as all the Valders waters, 
were too chilled with snow water, when I 
passed by them at Midsummer, to be fit for 
Angling : later in the season, I doubt not, they 
afford good sport. The Hurdal Vand, near 
Eaaholt, has the character of holding many 
and fine trout. The Mjosen Lake is too fall 
of pike ; and none of the lateral streams that 

of every thing used either in fly-fishing, or trolling ; as also of 
artificial flies, in every stage of their manufacture. No doubt 
this little work will contribute to render an art peculiarly 
English much more familiar to so good imitators, as are the 
Norwegians, with such opportunities for its exercise. 



134 TWO SUMMERS 

fall into it are good. Of the Laag, Long, or 
Losne (for it bears all these names) that chiefly 
feeds it, I have already spoken : if the water 
be in order, a fair nnmber of tront may be 
killed in it, near Laurgaard ; from Lie to Tofte, 
however, is a still better reach. 

The Otte Vand, on which Lomb and Vaage 
are sitnated, is totally nnfit for Angling : ,but a 
little to the South of it, in a Valley named 
Hedal, I was assured upon competent autho- 
rity that there is an abundance of trout and 
char. And if the Sportsman be adventurous 
enough to pursue this wild valley some thirty 
miles, up to the Ssetters at its head, he will 
find a chain of small Lakes, called Finster Aa 
Vand, below the great Bygdin Vand; which 
at least contain large and well flavoured trout, 
for I have eaten them, from three to five 
pounds in weight, with flesh of a deeper red 
than Salmon. I am only afraid that from 
these Lakes being situated near the highest 
range in Norway (the Jotun Fjeld) they may 



IN NORWAY. 135 

possibly be too discoloured for fly fishing, 
until late in the Autumn. 

There are also numerous Reindeer in the 
neighbouring mountains \ and not being much 
disturbed, they are more easily approached 
than in more frequented districts. It must, 
therefore, be a capital quarter for a Sportsman, 
who is well prepared to rough it, there being 
no permanent residents. The Landlord at 
Moe (from whom I chiefly obtained this infor- 
mation, corroborated by friends at Vaage) pos- 
sesses S setters, or Chalets for the Summer 
pasturage, at the very head of the Glen, and 
will, be most happy to render every assistance 
in his power to the bold Adventurer. I much 
regret that I did not explore it ; the scenery at 
any rate must be magnificent. 

I have already said enough in the last Chap- 
ter to give the reader to understand what ex- 
cellent sport may be had, at the proper season, 
in Lessoe Lake, and the streams that flow into, 
and out of it. Also the Lakes of Jerkin have 



136 TWO SUMMERS 

been sufficiently described: the early part of 
the Driva (before it descends into the Valley 
of Kongsvold) is full of small trout, of which 
an unlimited quantity may be taken in fa- 
vourable weather. 

While at Horaas in 1837, in the course of an 
unsuccessful expedition into the mountains on 
the frontiers of Sweden, for the purpose of 
seeing an encampment of Lapps, I fished the 
extensive Lake Oresund, as well as one of its 
principal feeders, at a Fall near Brsekke, where 
at that season (September) there ought to have 
been large trout. I rose, however, but one 
good sized fish ; and caught a few small ones. 
I had better sport on my way back to Eoraas, 
in the stream that issues out of Hitter Soe : 
and still better, on a subsequent day, in the 
more copious river by which Lake Oresund dis- 
charges its waters. Very heavy fish frequent 
the latter, which is well suited for fly-fishing, 
still more so for trolling. I was not lucky in 
the day ; the heaviest trout I landed weighed 
three pounds, but I rose better fish, and saw 



IN NORWAY. 137 

still larger jump in the water. This stream is 
the young Glommen : in the lower part of its 
course this splendid River nowhere appeared 
adapted to Angling; besides, it is too much 
infested with Pike. 

Sselboe Soe, near Trondbjem, is reported by 
good Anglers to be one of the best Lakes in 
Norway : the trout are large, and usually take 
the fly freely. I have not tried it : but from 
personal experience I can guarantee any toler- 
able Angler to fill a very large basket in a very 
short time, at the Lake of Hammer, on the 
way to Steenkjser ; if he be but moderately fa- 
voured by weather. When I have been at 
Hammer, there was never wind enough for the 
larger fish to take the fly; although I saw many 
of great size spring in the water : but during 
the few hours I angled there, on three several 
occasions, I rose trout from half a pound to 
a pound, nearly as fast as I could cast my fly. 
There are also ducks and other aquatic birds to 
be shot, in the Autumn, 

I will conclude this imperfect catalogue of 



138 TWO SUMMERS 

the principal trout-waters in Norway that lie 
on the Tourist's road, by again referring to the 
Vserdal River, where at the Upper Foss (about 
three miles from Ostgrunden, seepage 117) fine 
trout may be taken by the troll, for which it is 
a favourable spot: and by penetrating still 
higher up the Valley, towards Sweden, nume- 
rous lakes are met with, universally described as 
full of large trout, that take the fly greedily. 

Having alluded to the Salmon Rivers of 
Sweden, I will add a brief notice of the few in 
that kingdom where I have taken trout. The 
Angling reader will recollect that upon my first 
visit to TroUheettan at the end of May 1837, I 
killed a few very fine trout below those magni- 
ficent Falls. One weighed ten pounds and a 
half, the heaviest trout I ever took with the fly : 
others were of five and four pounds each. They 
at the time appeared to me identical with the 
Salmo ferox, of the larger Lakes in Scotland : 
and specimens of the same having been since 
submitted to Mr. Yarrell, by Mr. Lloyd, that 



IN NORWAY. 139 

eminent Ichthyologist lias pronounced tliem to 
be such.. There can be no doubt that they 
come down from Lake "Wenern, the second 
largest body of fresh water in Europe ; and not 
being able to return, harbour in the quietest 
holes they can find by the side of that rushing 
world of waters. 

Below the Foss at Lillo Edet, on the same 
Biver, trout of great size, as well as Salmon, 
are also taken : it is scarcely a place for the fly, 
but the troll might perhaps answer. Bleak, for 
bait, are easily procurable at Trollhsettan. A 
short way above the Falls, I have caught well- 
sized trout at certain spots, where a few islets 
cause a trifling current : but by far the best 
point is at Ona-foss, six or seven miles higher 
up the Gotha. Mr. Lloyd, the well-known 
Author of the " Northern Field Sports," has 
established a fishery there ; and, I understand, 
in some summers has taken as much as six 
thousand pounds' weight of trout. Those that 
are not caught in nets, he chiefly kills with the 



140 TWO SUMMERS 

troll ; not caring to use the fly for sucli mon- 
sters, which, occasionally exceed thirty pounds, 
and frequently twenty pounds. The Game 
Laws in Sweden being infinitely severer than 
in Norway, he is enabled to keep off poachers 
in some degree : but I fear it has cost him 
considerable annoyance and trouble. 

Lake Wenern itself not only contains these 
gigantic trout, but also pike, chub, burbot, &c. : 
and in my judgment is not at all adapted to 
Angling : neither are any of its Southern tri- 
butaries, with which I am acquainted. On its 
Northern and Western coasts, however, (for it 

o 

is quite an inland Sea) from Amal to Carlstad, 
are many Lakes and streams, said to afford ex- 
cellent Angling. At Dejefors, on the Klara, 
fourteen miles above Carlstad, great quantities 
of trout are annually taken below the Fall. 
The Klara is the principal feeder of Lake We- 
nern ; it is of great length, collecting all the 
drainage, and bringing timber down from the 
very neighbourhood of Roraas. 



IN NORWAY. 141 

The water that issues from Lake Wettern is 
far clearer than that of the Wenern. Indeed 
it is so pure, as even in the middle of the Lake 
to taste like spring-water : and as the very few 
streams that feed it, are strikingly incommen- 
surate with the body of water that flows out 
at Motala, it is the universal opinion that 
it must be chiefly supplied by subaqueous 
springs. 

The latter end of May, the trout seem to 
leave the crystal depths of Lake Wettern, 
where they had taken refuge during 'the win- 
ter, and appear on the streams at Motala. 
They are killed there of great size, with the 
Lyster, the worm, and even a rude troll : also 
here and there in wooden traps. In conse- 
quence of the number of mills and other ob- 
structions at this point, I preferred accompa- 
nying the Steamboat to Husbyfjol, a small 
village, near the exit of this same Eiver from a 
lower and much smaller Lake, called Boren. 
Here I staid a couple of days : and though I 



142 TWO SUMMERS 

caught only sixteen trout, they weighed thirty 
pounds. The weather was bright, and yet very 
cold ; unfavourable enough for fly fishing. 

I found also on the spot a native Angler who 
plied the fish, early and late, with worm and 
bait. His tackle was very uncouth, but by 
perseverance he killed several fine fish : and 
still more interfered with my sport, by being 
on the water before me. He paid some trifle 
to the Landlord of the Inn for liberty to 
angle : and though I was armed with the 
same permission, he did not half like seeing 
me pull out so many fine fish, which he had 
been vainly endeavouring to catch. The larg- 
est that I landed weighed upwards of four 
pounds : besides four others of three pounds 
each. 

I know not where I have seen so many large 
trout as here ; and it is very possible that there 
may be infinitely better places than I was 
able to discover during the afternoon and 
morning that I spent there. An English 



IN NORWAY. 143 

gentleman, some time resident in Stockholm, 
came to this river for several summers ; and 
is reported to have had great sport. The An- 
gling would be infinitely better, if there were 
not too well constructed weirs, about a mile 
below Husbyfjol : they by no means catch all 
the trout, but they much injure the river, and 
annoy the Angler. 

I fear I can hardly add any thing useful 
to the hints I have already given on the sub- 
ject of flies and tackle. Patterns of those I 
used may be seen at Martin Kelly X or at 
Evatt's : and if I were again to go to the 
Namsen, I should take most of the same kinds. 
Any hook smaller than that commonly used 
for the strongest treble gut Irish flies, is nearly 
useless : single gut, such as we employ for 
summer fishing in Scotland and Ireland, is 
quite out of the question in Norway. I do not 
dislike those patterns of Tweed flies, that re- 
semble a long, rough hairy worm; but for 
the Namsen, I should prefer having them 



144 TWO SUMMERS 

retied on Irish hooks, with the addition of a 
rather handsomer wing. 

For the Guul, and such other rivers where 
constant casting is required, smaller Salmon 
flies must be used; but still I recommend them 
to be of good size, and invariably on treble gut. 
An English Gentleman, who fished on the 
Namsen in 1838, killed many of his heaviest 
Salmon by trolling with a small fish. I have no 
doubt that in certain states of the water, this 
may be a successful method ; but, I confess, I 
like only to take my fish fairly with the fly, 
and rarely will employ any other mode, even 
for trout. Perhaps even the " red berry/' or 
prepared Salmon roe, might prove as killing 
here, as it undoubtedly has been found else- 
where. But I look upon this method as but 
one degree removed above worm fishing, and 
but two degrees above netting ; and totally 
unworthy of any fair Angler, who fishes for 
sport, not for the pot. 

I consider a well oiled silk line as preferable 



IN NORWAY. 145 

in fishing the Namsen, because it runs better 
off the wheel, and takes up less compass than 
a patent line : but for casting I prefer the 
latter. The Angler ought to be provided 
with each, of not less length than 100 yards ; 
120 yards are still better : I have several times 
had 150 yards run out in a few seconds, while 
I was rowing to the shore : but it is the far 
wiser plan to follow the fish with the boat (as 
I have before described) in these first despe- 
rate plunges, which are usually down the 
stream : since, with that length of heavy line 
out in the Rapids of the Namsen, it is almost 
certain to be entangled round a rock. 

The Salmon fisher should further have one 
stout rod, twenty feet long ; and a second, 
somewhat lighter, but of nearly equal length : 
together with a two handed trout rod, of 
sixteen feet. He will, of course, get them 
of his own maker : but I doubt if he will find 
any more to be depended on for quality and 
strength, than those manufactured by Eaton, 

VOL. II. H 



146- TWO SUMMERS 

in Crooked-lane. They should all be provided 
with a spare third joint, and two or three tops 
to splice : ferruled tops for Salmon rods I 
especially eschew. Each of these rods must 
be fitted with a strong leather case, which 
Eaton knows well how to make ; and they can 
then be safely strapped under the shafts of 
the carriole, if the travellers equipage admits 
of no better place. 

And these general directions, I think, are 
enough for the purpose I have in view : for I 
pretend not to write for the Tyro, who needs 
to be reminded of the minuter articles of his 
craft that he must bring with him, or who 
requires instruction as to how he is to cast 
his fly, or manage his fish when hooked. Such 
beginners have no business on the Namsen; 
they must commence with more pastoral 
streams. 

My only advice is, to let the fly sink moder- 
ately under the water, and to take care that it 
invariably swim up and down the stream, not 



IN NORWAY. -147 

awkwardly across it. Next, to keep the line 
perfectly taught, by which means the Salmon 
will hook himself, with very little assistance 
from the Angler. When hooked, if he be a 
large fish, handle him firmly, though somewhat 
gently at first ; but as soon as his first violence 
is foiled, and he is half coaxed, half drawn, 
into the safest spot that lies near, then bear 
upon him boldly, as much as your tackle will 
well sustain. 

By handling a heavy Salmon too roughly, 
at the moment he first feels the hook and is 
in possession of his full strength, you run great 
risk of angering him into desperate plunges, 
that, if the hold be indifferent, or the place 
dangerous, may effect his escape. However, 
on no account suffer a fish ever to get the line 
loose : for one Salmon that escapes by being 
held too tight, fifty are lost by the looseness of 
the line permitting the hook to fall out. Of 
course, when a large Salmon exhibits a determi- 
nation to rush away, line must be given him : 
h 2 



148 TWO SUMMERS 

but let him not have a yard, that he does not 
fight for ; and the instant that you feel him 
begin to turn, draw him in, and shorten line ; 
prepared to repeat this process, until his 
strength be fairly exhausted, and he is content 
to float near enough to the shore to be gaffed — 
an anxious moment, especially with an awk- 
ward Norwegian attendant, so different from 
the accomplished gaffers of the Tweed, or the 
Shannon. 

Not only steadiness of hand and eye is re- 
quired in controlling the energies of an active 
Salmon ; but also considerable presence of 
mind, as often, when a fish is making for a 
dangerous point it must be decided in a single 
instant how and where he is to be turned ; or 
whether it be most advisable to run the risk of 
breaking the tackle, by forcibly withholding 
any more line, rather than suffer him to reach 
his point. 

The reader also, who has perused my 
sketches of Angling on the Namsen, may 



IN NORWAY. 149 

perhaps have collected that the nerves are 
occasionally tried by perils, not to the tackle, 
or the poor Salmon, but to the Angler himself, 
at least on the upper part of that noble, but 
wild stream. How much does this risk and 
difficulty enhance the glorious sport, while the 
enthusiast fondly fancies it almost dignifies it ! 

But I dare not indulge myself any further 
on a theme that must appear incomprehensible 
rhapsody to any one not smitten with the same 
passion ; for a passion it is, if it be felt at all, 
and circumstances admit of its developement : 
while the true Salmon fisher will acknowledge 
the same sentiments in his own breast, and 
only complain that I have expressed them so 
inadequately, 



150 



TWO SUMMERS 



CHAPTER XI. 

General view of the Geology of Norway — By whom has been 
described : Naumann ; Von Buch ; Keilhau — Great extent 
of Primary Rocks — General characters — Amount of Detritus 
in Valleys — Origin of — Proofs of an elevation of land — Cop- 
per mines of Roraas — Silver mines of Kongsberg — Iron of 
Arendal, &c. — Transition Territory of Christiania — Remark- 
able Fossils — Plutonic and Metamorphic Rocks — Sketch of 
Geology of Central and Southern Sweden — Transition rocks 
of Kinnekulle, &c. — Baltic Boulders — Uddevalla — Chalk 
and Greensand of Scania — Localities and Fossils — Coal dis- 
trict of Hor and Hoganiis — Chalk and " Quaternary For- 
mations ,, of Denmark. 

A truce now to piscatorial details. But before 
quitting a country, through which I have wan- 
dered with so much delight, I would wish to 
add my mite of information respecting its gene- 
ral geological features. Geology has of late 
years become so popular a science among all 
ranks, that it is to be expected many whom sport 
or the picturesque may chiefly lure to this ro- 



IN NORWAY. 151 

mantic land, will also cast a scientific eye on 
its rocks : for, whatever may have been the 
case in Dr. Johnson's time, Anglers are proud 
to know that, in our day at least, the foremost 
philosophers and artists do not disdain the 
gentle craft : the hammer often accompanies 
the fishing rod. 

Besides, the geological structure of Norway 
too much influences the character both of the 
rivers and the scenery, not to be interesting to 
every tourist. To the former it gives their nu- 
merous Fosses, their rapidity, their purity, when 
not contaminated by Glaciers : to the latter, 
its sheer walls of rock, its splintered cliffs, its 
longwinding Fjords, which form so characteristic 
a feature of the savage grandeur of Norway. 
By far the- largest portion of the surface of 
Norway is occupied by those ancient rocks 
(formerly called Primitive, or Primary,) from 
Gneiss, through an infinity of varieties, down 
to Clay slate; and which in all the countries 
where they appear, are at any rate the oldest, 



152 TWO SUMMERS 

the loftiest, and the hardest, that come under 
our observation. 

I should suppose that there is not in the 
world so favourable a field for studying this 
most intricate and important Group of rocks, 
as here. With the exception of the " Transi- 
tion Temtorium" of Christiania, and a com- 
paratively small tract in the extreme North, 
they extend over the whole of Norway : while 
from various circumstances connected with 
their mineralogical character, and the violent 
upheavings they have suffered since their origi- 
nal deposition, they frequently present to the 
geologist perpendicular faces of hundreds and 
even thousands of feet, where he may observe 
upon a gigantic scale, not only the contortions 
of strata, but the interesting changes of mi- 
neralogical structure. 

On the, other hand, there are many difficul- 
ties in the way of the geologist, who would 
trace out the relations of these rocks to each 
other, and reduce the probable mode and 



IN NORWAY. 153 

sequence of their origin to any thing like order. 
There is an enormous extent of wild mountains, 
each presenting peculiarities which require to be 
studied, in order to obtain a complete idea of 
the history of these obscure formations. Then 
the summer, during which alone the higher 
ranges can be traversed, is lamentably brief : and 
the travelling becomes very difficult, directly 
the main roads are quitted ; indeed, to one un- 
acquainted with the language, or unprepared 
to rough it as to living and accommodations, 
it may be described as almost impracticable. 
None, therefore, but a native can be reason- 
ably expected to farnish a complete geological 
Map of this country. 

At the same time, I feel strongly convinced 
that this department of Science would be infi- 
nitely benefited by even a single summer's 
visit of any of our first English Geologists, 
really qualified for this task ; and particularly 
of him, who is universally regarded as our 
great authority on the subject of our own older 
h 3 

V 



154 TWO SUMMERS 

Rocks. If lie would only examine carefully 
the most instructive localities that lie conve- 
nient for observation, near the principal roads, 
I doubt not that his acknowledged powers of 
penetration and classification, would throw 
most valuable light on these puzzling forma- 
tions, and afford a clue to unravel many of the 
seeming mysteries of their origin and relations. 

I am not aware that any English geologist 
of eminence has visited Norway, except Mr. 
Lyell, who did not, I believe, extend his obser- 
vations beyond the territory of transition and 
plutonic rocks, with which he was more inter- 
ested. I am equally unacquainted with any 
first rate French geologist, who has ventured 
into the interior of Norway. Professor Nau- 
mann, of Jena, has published in German, some 
account of several " Wanderings" through the 
most interesting mountain districts ;* which is 

* " Beytrage zur Kenntniss Norwegens, gesammelt auf Wan- 
derungen wahrend der Sommer-monate der Jahre 1821 und 
1822. Von Carl Friedrich Naumann. Leipzig, 1824. " 



IN NORWAY. 155 

extremely valuable as furnishing details of many 
important localities, difficult of access. But in- 
dependently of his having viewed this land nearly 
twenty years ago, which in a science that has 
advanced so rapidly as Geology, is a momen- 
tous consideration ; Professor Naumann rather 
gives an accurate statement of isolated facts, 
than a comprehensive view of the relations of 
extensive groups, or any enlarged theory of their 
general history. Von Buch's still earlier Tra- 
vels remain, perhaps, even at the present day, 
the most valuable contribution, by any foreigner, 
to Norwegian Geology. 

Norway possesses only one native Geologist 
of note, B. M. Keilhau, Professor of Minera- 
logy and Geology, at the University of Chris- 
tiania. He is a man of undoubted intelligence 
and possessed of great knowledge of his science, 
both practical and theoretical. He has devoted 
many summers to the close examination of the 
Scandinavian rocks, from the Western Fjords 
to the confines of Sweden, from Lindesn&s to 



156 TWO SUMMERS 

the North Cape, and even to Spitzbergen. 
He has communicated great part of the results 
of his investigations in a Norwegian periodical, 
entitled " Nyt Magazin for Naturvidenska- 
berne and the rest will doubtless follow, in a 
language unfortunately little accessible to the 
generality of scientific men. Professor Keil- 
hau has likewise lately published in German, a 
full description of the " Transition Territory" 
of Christiania, together with a coloured Map ; 
which must be looked upon as a most valuable 
contribution to the Geology of his native 
country. 

The Professor's views upon many Geological 
subjects, especially with regard to what have 
been termed the Metamorphic Hocks, are very 
peculiar ; which renders it the more desirable 
that the phenomena on which his views are 
founded,, should be submitted to the examina- 
tion of competent Geologists, not wedded to the 
same opinions : preconceived theories too often 
involuntarily bias the judgment of the most 



IN NORWAY. 157 

impartial observers. Keilhau, himself, is most 
anxious that his facts and deductions should be 
subjected to the rigorous criticism of his scien- 
tific brethren. He is convinced that they will 
eventually be found to bear out his theories. 
At any rate it seems certain that nowhere can 
the relations of what are now commonly called 
Plutonic rocks (though Keiihau does not admit 
the appropriateness of the name, as involving a 
theory of their igneous origin) to metamorphic 
rocks, be more extensively or more usefully 
studied than in this district. Whatever may be 
thought of the Professor's theories, there can 
be no doubt that Norwegian Geology is deeply 
indebted to him, not only for the description 
and map of the Transition district already al- 
luded to, but also for a most laborious and im- 
portant collection of facts, embracing nearly 
the whole of the kingdom. 

Gneiss is allowed to be the most abundant 
formation in Norway. But in speaking of it, 
or the other primary rocks here developed, 



158 TWO SUMMERS 

considerable latitude must be 'allowed : mica is 
often wanting, so also is felspar : and very 
often, hornblende is either associated with 
these two ingredients of Gneiss, or entirely 
replaces them. A composition of hornblende 
and quartz is common in the North : and in 
some spots, as on Rundene, on Sneehsettan, in 
Gjendal, &c, the rock seems entirely composed 
of quartz, which splits into very thin laminae. I 
observed no slate rocks like our own, with true 
slaty cleavage : but silicious rocks that admit 
of extensive and even separation in the plane 
of their stratification, (similar to the flagstones 
of our coal formation,) are found in many 
parts, and occasionally are used for roofing. 

Every variety of rock, belonging to the fa- 
milies of Gneiss, pure and syenitic, hornblende 
slate, mica slate, quartz rock, chlorite, and 
clay slate, down to the most friable shales, 
may be seen ; and very often appear to run 
into each other, in a manner very puzzling to 
a tyro. Then there are numerous rocks called 



IN NORWAY. 159 

by the older Geologists, such as Esmark and 
Naumann, Grauwacke: under what title we 
should now class them, I know not ; they have 
the mineralogical character belonging to that 
proscribed family. Indeed, the difficulty of 
accurately distinguishing many of the Norwe- 
gian rocks by names recognized in other coun- 
tries, is so great, that excellent Geologists 
differ considerably in their nomenclature of 
the same formations. 

The lines of stratification are not always 
strongly marked : though it may invariably be 
distinguished, with more or less difficulty, that 
the rock really is stratified. Speaking gene- 
rally, the Norwegian Rocks are not much 
contorted, neither do they dip at such high 
angles, as might be anticipated, in the case 
of formations of so great antiquity ; since the 
deposition of which the Globe has suffered so 
many violent convulsions. 

As being probably connected with this com- 
parative absence of disturbance, it may be 



160 TWO SUMMERS 

mentioned, that there is scarcely any trace of 
granite or other Plutonic rocks, within the ex- 
tensive Primary district. This is a remarkable 
fact, when taken in connexion with the enor- 
mous developement of igneous rocks, within the 
Transition territory ; but, I presume, must be 
explained by their having burst through the 
incumbent mass of least resistance. There 
is a small granitic district, on the Eastern 
coast of Finmark, not far from the North 
Cape : but nowhere in Norway, except near 
Christiania, have I seen veins of granite (com- 
mon in the Gneiss of Sweden) or greenstone, 
or trap, or other intrusive rock, so frequent 
among the older rocks of Scotland. The 
Serpentine mentioned by Esmark as occurring 
near Roraas, must be quoted as a rare instance 
of a rock, now generally considered to be of 
igneous origin, within the Primary district. 

Occasionally fragments of an older Gneiss 
are found imbedded in regular strata of the 
same rock. I have observed other instances ; 



IN NORWAY. 161 

but the best examples with which I am ac- 
quainted are at Rostan, above Laurgaard, and 
at the Ferry of Heel, twenty miles to the 
North-east of Trondhjem. Near the latter 
place, there are evidences of considerable 
disturbance, in the contortions of the adjoin- 
ing strata : the fragments are large, irregularly 
disposed, a little rounded, and completely 
amalgamated with the mass, so as to have the 
appearance of being fused into it. At Hostan, 
the imbedded fragments are smaller, more 
conformably arranged, as if squeezed within 
the layers of the Gneiss; their edges, as 
Esmark says, are for the most part sharp, but 
the felspar is rounded. I looked in vain for 
any extraordinary signs of ancient convulsion 
in this vicinity. 

Hard as these primary rocks are, there is 
not a mountain valley that does not afford 
evidence of their surfaces having been exten- 
sively worn down, in the course of long geo- 
logical periods. The depth of detritus which 



162 TWO SUMMERS 

is observed in Vserdal, Orkedal, or near Trond- 
hjem, for instance, is enough to astonish one, 
if we regard the excessive hardness of the 
rocks, from which it is undoubtedly derived. 
In the first locality, especially, it is not a depo- 
sit of large fragments torn from their parent 
cliff, and a little rounded by attrition ; but an 
enormous thickness of fine silt, interspersed 
with small gravel ; which seems to attest, not 
one or two great convulsions, but long con- 
tinued wasting and rolling processes. The 
destructive processes, to which the Norwegian 
rocks are exposed, are commensurate with 
their durability. That great agent for trans- 
posing the constituent parts of our Globe, 
Water, exerts its energies on a gigantic scale. 
Without speaking of the larger rivers that 
roll through their vallies, with an impetuosity 
that nothing seems capable of resisting, there 
are unnumbered torrents, fed by the perennial 
snows, which hurry down the fragments of the 
higher mountains, that have been loosened by 



IN NORWAY. 163 

frost and rain ; and after breaking and pounding 
them in their headlong course, deposit the 
fractured and rounded masses, with the asso- 
ciated silt, in a yearly increasing talus, which 
may be invariably observed at the first level 
point these streams reach, from the upper 
ranges. 

The effect of this power of transportation 
is greatly increased by the vicissitudes of tem- 
perature, to which Norway is peculiarly liable. 
Its brief summers are intensely hot ; its long 
winters proportionably severe : hence the wa- 
ter, which during the former season percolates 
every fissure and crevice, becomes frozen to 
the lowest depths it has penetrated, and by its 
expansive power rends asunder its rocky prison. 

Norway is doubtless indebted to these atmo- 
spheric agencies for much of its romantic gran- 
deur, its shattered crags, and perpendicular pre- 
cipices : while to the seemingly destructive, yet 
really beneficial element, that brings portions 
of the hard mountains from the regions of eter- 



164 TWO SUMMERS 

nal frost, in a comminuted form, into the vallies 
below, it owes all the cultivated land in its in- 
terior. This mass of detritus, on which the 
Norwegian Gaards are almost without excep- 
tion situated, is most commonly disposed in 
successive tiers of terraces, rising one above the 
other, with great regularity. Three such tiers 
appear to be a very usual number in the north : 
I have seen them rising from fifty to one hun- 
dred feet above each other. No one, I con- 
ceive, can examine them without coming to the 
conclusion that their conformation is owing to 
the action of water, which must have stood at 
those respective levels during considerable pe- 
riods, to allow of such vast accumulations. 

In confined Vallies, removed from the sea, I 
doubt not these terraces are frequently connect- 
ed with the bursting of natural barriers, that 
had previously kept the water at a higher level; 
indeed, there is not a Foss that does not supply 
evidence of being now lower in height, and 
further up the stream, than it formerly was. 



IN NORWAY. 165 

But in the case of broad Vallies, opening wide 
upon the sea (as in the Fjord of Trondhjeni) 
and where the hills that enclose them, recede, 
as they approach the mouth, without there 
being any appearance of barrier across them, 
it seems to me difficult to account for the 
quantity of gravel, &c, that occupies their 
entire breadth, except upon the supposition of 
an elevation of the land within the period 
that the mountains and rivers assumed their 
present conditions. 

The Valley of the Nid, near Trondhjem (as 
well as Stordal and Vserdal on the same Fjord) 
is of considerable width, and is covered with 
terraces of rolled gravel, not only much above 
the present level of the river, but even of high 
water mark. If it had ever formed a Lake, 
there would be some traces of the rocks that 
had retained it at a higher level. As this is not 
the case, we must suppose that it was formerly 
at a comparatively lower level ; when it would 
form a bay, into which the river would bring 



166 TWO SUMMERS 

detritus, to be there rolled and arranged, in 
the way common to quiet arms of the sea. 

Accordingly, shells similar to those now 
found in the neighbouring Ocean, have been 
discovered at various spots round this Fjord, 
(now raised considerably above its present level) 
particularly the whole way from Steenkjser to 
the Snaasen Vand. Two intelligent Scotch- 
men, located there as Farmers, told me they 
scarcely ever dug to any depth in the adjoining 
Vallies, without finding beds of shells, some 
whole, some broken, just as they would lie on 
the shore. They estimated the greatest height 
at which they had observed these deposits, to be 
100 feet above the sea. But this is nothing in 
comparison with the evidences collected by 
Keilhau, who has discovered balani adhering to 
rocks, many miles inland, at a measured ele- 
vation of, 470 feet above the sea : besides ob- 
serving deposits, which he has strong collateral 
reasons for believing to be marine, at a height 
of 600 feet. 



IN NORWAY. 167 

Keilhau has been induced by the interest 
which of late years has been attached to the 
question of the elevation of Scandinavia, to 
make a personal examination of almost the 
entire coast, from Christiania to North Cape, 
with the express view of determining this 
question, as far as possible, with regard to 
Norway. He has given a full account of his 
researches and conclusions, in a late number 
of the New Magazine of Natural History, 
published by the Physiographical Society at 
Christiania, in 1837. His qualifications for 
the task, and his industry in accomplishing it, 
seem to leave little for his successors to add 
upon this point. 

He has accumulated a great mass of evidence, 
both from Man and his earliest works, and from 
still more ancient records of Nature. He 
every where questioned the oldest fishermen, 
as to any observed or recorded alteration of 
level, in their neighbourhood ; and he specifies 
all the monuments erected by the earliest inha- 



168 TWO SUMMERS 

bitants upon the coast or islands, together with 
their present height above the sea: besides 
which; he hunted out every trace of marine 
deposits, of which he could obtain any informa- 
tion. From all these he comes to the con elu- 
sion, that they afford no positive proof of any 
elevation of any part whatever of Norway, 
within the period of History : but that from the 
concurrent testimony of seafaring men in the 
South of Norway (for towards the North this 
testimony diminishes) in reference to " the sink- 
ing of the sea," as they express it ; and also from 
the position of some works of the aborigines on 
the South and South-west coasts, it is a " pro- 
bability not altogether to be rejected," that the 
Southern portion of this country, may have 
been a little elevated, since it was first inha- 
bited. This is rendered the more probable by 
the fact of its being the nearest portion to 
Sweden, which has undoubtedly been elevated 
within the historical period. 

The amount of this rise would seem from one 



IN NORWAY. 169 

remarkable monument of the olden time (the 
" Snekkestoer of Spangereid ") to be about ten 
feet : whereas certain monumental stones (simi- 
lar to our Cromlechs) upon very low islands be- 
tween Arendal and Christiansand (as likewise 
others in Bukke Sound, and elsewhere) prove 
that it cannot have been any thing like so much, 
at that point at least, since they were erected. 
We must therefore either suppose that the 
elevation occurred subsequently to the erection 
of the first mentioned, but prior to the last ; or 
else, that it has not been constant and universal 
throughout the district. Indeed, if we are at all 
to receive the evidence of fishermen as to the rise 
of rocks within their memory, we must at once 
reject the idea of any such constancy and univer- 
sality ; since a gradual rise of less than one foot 
in fifty years would not be observable in each 
man's life : and this would amount to twenty 
feet in 1000 years, an elevation, which, it can 
be proved to demonstration, has not occurred 
at many places within the last ten centuries. 

VOL. II. i 



170 TWO SUMMERS 

The Professor next shows the impossibility of 
any appreciable change of level in the northern 
part of Scandinavia, since it was inhabited by 
man, from the position of many ancient monu- 
ments, to which he refers; such as those on 
the island of Atle, and on the point of Ag- 
denees. In Nordiand and Finmark the idea 
of a " sinking of the ocean" seems to be much 
less generally entertained. 

But allowing that the evidence preponderates 
against the supposition of any observable change 
of relative level between the sea and the 
Norwegian continent, since the latter was inha- 
bited by men who have left records of their 
existence, it is at any rate certain that what 
may be called the monuments of Nature prove 
very clearly a considerable elevation of the land, 
up to a period so recent, that all Geologists 
would assign it to the very latest division of 
the Tertiary iEra, or even to the commence- 
ment of the existing order of things. Keilhau 
has discovered shells, belonging to the same 



IN NORWAY. 171 

species as now inhabit the Scandinavian seas, 
at a height of 470 feet on the South-east coast 
of Norway; which prove that a change of 
level must have occurred to that extent at least : 
while he has traced beds to a further height of 
150 feet, which have every appearance of a 
marine origin, though they do not contain 
fossils. 

Ancient coast lines may also be observed, not 
only in the soft loose soil, but even in the 
mountain ranges of hard rock, high above 
the present level of the sea : also Volcanic 
Scoriae, and other foreign substances, are 
found in various places, either as isolated 
blocks, or in deposits of gravel, evidently due 
to the action of water. The shells are seen 
at every elevation, from the extreme height 
above mentioned, down to the present shores ; 
and at certain places form vast banks. These 
facts attest long periods of disturbance, suc- 
ceeded by equally long periods of rest. The 
shells belong to animals that do not live in 
i 2 



172 TWO SUMMERS 

deep water: and the banks, just now spoken 
of, are necessarily litoral, and require con- 
siderable time for their accumulation : while, 
certainly, the impression on the rocky cliffs 
could not be effected except by the long con- 
tinued action of the waves. 

Whether this elevation of the land was slow 
and gradual, or due to violent and isolated 
movements, the Professor does not think there 
is evidence to decide : but he seems to incline 
to the former supposition. The South-eastern 
portion of Norway, and a part of the Province 
of Trondhjem, afford the most undeniable 
proofs of a geologically recent elevation of 
the coast to a great extent : but if we allow 
the erratic blocks and similar phsenomena to 
be connected with the same cause, we are 
carried back to a period when not merely the 
lower hills of the Northern continent lay 
beneath the ocean, but even the loftiest moun- 
tain ranges scarcely emerged from the sur- 
rounding waters. 



IN NORWAY. 173 

Limited beds of crystalline limestone, more 
or less pure, are interspersed among the pri- 
mary rocks of Norway, in a manner very com- 
mon to that family : near Steenkjaer the Scotch 
farmers before mentioned have burned this 
lime with success for agricultural purposes. 
The mica slate on the Lake of Saelboe, near 
Trondhjem is thickly studded with small gar- 
nets ; and is used for grinding-stones. A kind 
of Steatite is found near Lomb and Vaage, on 
the Lake Otte Vand, and is employed for 
stoves and other domestic purposes, to which 
its property of resisting fire adapts it. Chrome 
also exists in the same neighbourhood ; as also 
near Uoraas, and in many other localities : and 
there doubtless are innumerable other mineral 
treasures, yet undiscovered, throughout the im- 
penetrable district of the Norwegian Fj elder. 

The richest mine of copper within Norway, 
is at Uoraas, near the junction of the great 
Do™ and Kjolen ranges. It is situated in 
chloritic slate; but Serpentine, both common 



174 TWO SUMMERS 

and noble, according to Esmark, composes se- 
veral of the adjoining mountains : and masses 
of crystalline limestone are found lying de- 
tached on the surface, in sufficient quantities 
to supply what is required for the flux of the 
metal. The smelting-houses are in the centre 
of the little town of Roraas : they are not dis- 
tinguished by any novelty or ingenuity of the 
processes employed, or by grandeur of scale, 
when considered as the principal of their kind 
in the kingdom. The ore is first baked in large 
heaps, to get rid of the sulphur, with which it 
is almost invariably combined: it seems in 
general rich, although little native copper is 
obtained here. 

Roraas is remarkable as being one of the 
only three or four inland towns that Norway 
can boast. It is entirely supported by its mines : 
and lying, as it does, 2100 feet above the sea, 
not only higher than any kind of corn will grow, 
but even beyond the limits of any of the fir 
tribe, every thing is necessarily very dear. The 



IN NORWAY. 175 

mines are situated at a further height of nearly 
3000 feet; making a total altitude exceeding 
that of Jerkin on the Dovre Fjeld. I examined 
the mine nearest to the town, which is called 
" Old, or Storwarts Grube it is six or seven 
miles from Roraas. 

The usual law, that where there are subter- 
ranean treasures the surface should be sterile, 
is certainly not departed from here : it is bar- 
ren and ugly. But on the _day I visited the 
mines, the air was so clear, pure, and bracing, 
as to be highly exhilarating ; and the views of 
the Dovre Fjeld, and my old friend Rundene 
with its many beautiful peaks, were alone suffi- 
cient to reward me for the excursion. Stor- 
warts Grube is situated on the summit of an 
undulating heathy hill : they tell the usual 
legend of its discovery having been made by a 
Reindeer scratching up the moss that concealed 
it, just as a man was on the point of shooting ; 
and the event is commemorated by a picture in 
the church. 



• 



176 TWO SUMMERS 

The vein comes to the surface,, and dips at an 
angle of about forty degrees to the north. They 
have worked down it, in an irregular manner, 
about 1000 feet ; leaving masses of ore at proper 
distances to support the roof, and pursuing the 
vein wherever it promised to be most profitable. 
The works consequently branch into various 
passages, which are sometimes low and narrow, 
but oftener wide and lofty, so as to resemble 
rude halls of ample dimensions : when lighted 
up with the flambeaux of a numerous retinue 
they have a picturesquely solemn effect. This 
effect is occasionally heightened by blasting the 
rock with gunpowder, which in these confined 
caverns produces a tremendous explosion, that 
causes the tympanum of the ear to vibrate so 
long and so much, as, I should think, might 
easily cause or cure deafness. 

There are three shafts to draw up the ore and 
the water, by means of water wheels about thirty 
feet in diameter : how lamentably inferior to 
the engines of the Cornish mines ! The ore is 



IN NORWAY. 177 

generally rich : such of it as is too poor to be 
smelted at once, is pounded and washed in the 
ordinary way. About 150 persons are employed 
at this mine ; besides which there are several 
others in the neighbourhood ; and at Dragaas, 
near the head of the river Guul, on the road to 
Trondbjem, are also large copper smelting works. 
At this last place may be seen a remarkable con- 
glomerate, containing huge angular fragments 
of quartz; and likewise a celebrated circular basin 
in the rock, called " the Witches' Cauldron." 

The silver mines of Kongsberg, being so near 
to Christiania, have been too often visited and 
described to require much notice from me. 
They afford an argentiferous lead ore, irregu- 
larly disseminated through a hard, compact, 
quartzose rock, belonging to Gneiss : and 
occasionally, very large masses of native or pure 
silver occur. The mine belongs to Government, 
and supplies employment to nearly 200 men: its 
produce has been very variable in former years, 
but latterly has much improved. 

i 3 



178 TWO SUMMERS 

A magnificent Adit, of considerable width 
and height^ has been driven, to the distance 
of an English mile, directly into the solid rock. 
It is boarded so as to afford easy walking ; and 
terminates in an ample chamber, whence per- 
pendicular shafts descend to a depth of about 
1600 feet. The descent is far from being so 
easy as that of Roraas : it is effected by suc- 
sessive stages of ladders ; and by no means 
repays the fatigue of attempting it. I should, 
however, strongly advise the tourist to pene- 
trate to the end of the Adit, which, consider- 
ing its dimensions and the hardness of the 
rock, surpasses any tunnel I have seen : while 
the chamber into which the ore is drawn up, 
filled, as it was when I saw it, with uncouth 
swarthy figures, and lighted with numerous 
fires and flambeaux, seemed to me a worthy 
Hall of Vulcan, so deep within the bowels 
of the Earth. 

Arendal, and other places in the South-east- 
ern district of Norway, afford the chief supply 



IN NORWAY. 179 

of iron : but it is far less abundant here, than 
in the sister kingdom of Sweden. The metals 
obey here the law so generally observed else- 
where, of being developed much the most 
frequently and abundantly, near the lines of 
contact of Plutonic with sedimentary rocks.* 

However, the district most generally in- 
teresting to Geologists is probably that which 
has been named by Keilhau " the Transition 
Territory of Christiania. " It forms a basin of 
an irregularly triangular shape, bounded by 
two walls of Primary Rock, which meet to a 
point about the centre of Lake Mjosen, and 
thence gradually diverge in a South-westerly 
direction, the one constituting the Eastern 
shore of the Mjosen, and the Fjord of Christi- 
ania ; the other occupying the Western bank 
of the Lakes Rands and Tyri, and thence run- 
ning by Kongsberg and Skien, &c, to the 
Lange Sunds Fjord, where it meets the Sea. 

* Geea Norvegica, p. 125. 



180 TWO SUMMERS 

The whole of the intermediate space is occupied 
by argillaceous, calcareous, and arenaceous 
deposits, intermixed with extensive tracts of 
granite and porphyry. 

The numerous fossils contained in these de- 
posits prove that they belong to the ancient 
group of rocks, lately named and admirably 
described by Mr. Murchison, as Silurian. But 
it remains still to be shown whether the order 
of succession observed in South Wales, obtains 
equally in the Norwegian beds. Professor 
Keilhau as yet doubts whether such order can 
be made out : but it is hoped that ere long, the 
Author of the Silurian System will himself 
visit this interesting locality, and decide the 
question by an examination of the rocks and 
their contents on the spot. 

That very singular crustacean of the Fossil 
World, the Trilobite, is exceedingly abundant 
in the neighbourhood of Christiania. The rock 
is so hard, that perfect specimens are not easily 
procured : and the history of this extinct ani- 



IN NORWAY. 181 

mal is so very obscure, as to render it difficult, 
accurately to distinguish its various species. 
Above fifty varieties, however, have been dis- 
covered in Norway ; and to a certain extent 
described by Lector Boeck : they are all strictly 
three-lobed; there is none that resembles 
Murchison's Bumastus. Trilobites expanms, 
and Tr. crassicauda, are by much the most 
abundant ; Tr. extensus (as well as a few others) 
is supposed to be peculiar to Christiania. 

Of the Family Terebratida, there are at least 
twenty-five species, many of which are new. 
Among them I may mention Terebratida Wil- 
soni (Sowerby) Ter.plicatella, Atrypa aspera,Atr. 
lentieidaris, Atr. reticularis, (with the variety 
named alata, by Hisinger) also Atr. retrusa, 
new. The pretty little Delthyris cardiosperma 
(or ungula) is found here, but not abundantly : 
Leptcena depressa is more common : as also 
Lept. rugosa, Orthis zonata, &c. 

Gypidia Icevis (Goldfuss) is not uncommon : 
there are many species of Orbicula, and Tur- 



182 TWO SUMMERS 

« ritetta ; with five or six species of Orthoceratites ; 
but this last Cephalopod is neither so numerous 
nor so large here as in Sweden. A consider- 
able number of a supposed species of Lituite 
have been discovered lately in forming the 
approach to the new Royal Palace : as also a 
few specimens of Conularia quadrisulcata. 

In some spots, that very obscure fossil, which 
has been variously named Graptolithus, Prio- 
don, Prionotus, Fucoides Serra, &c, is found 
in great quantities ; often much pyritized. It 
was long doubted whether it belonged to the 
Vegetable, or Animal Kingdom : and though 
Professors Nilsson and Beck are most probably 
correct in classing it with the Family of. a Sea 
Pens, M still its position in the scale of being 
must be considered as not yet fixed. In 
Christiania an idea seems to obtain that it was 
somehow or other connected with the Trilobite, 
or Orthoceratite, in the way of an antenna, or 
something analogous : they have, however, 
never been found in connexion. 



IN NORWAY. 183 

Some of the islands in the Fjord of Chris- 
tiania are so composed of fossil corals, as to 
present quite the appearance of a coral reef: 
the finest specimens come from the island of 
Langoe, near Holmstrand. Among them are 
an abundance of Calamopora, {Gotlandica, 
&c.) (Favosites of Murchisori) Cyathophyllum, 
{vermiculare, &c.) Catenipora escaroides, &c. 
Columnar joints of Crinoidea are found in 
the island of Malmoe, and elsewhere : but I 
saw no good or perfect specimen of Encrinite. 

In the above catalogue, I have of course 
only mentioned those fossils which appeared 
to me the most interesting, either from their 
abundance or characteristic peculiarities. A 
bookbinder, of the name of Losch, usually 
has a few specimens for sale on moderate 
terms ; and will accompany the Geologist to 
the best localities. There is a pretty good 
collection of Norwegian Fossils in the Museum 
belonging to the University; as well as a still 
completer series of rocks to illustrate Professor 



184 TWO SUMMERS 

Keilhau's peculiar views respecting the passage 
of different rocks into each other. 

Perhaps a more favourable spot for examining 
the changes produced in the sedimentary rocks 
by those which are now almost universally al- 
lowed to be of igneous origin, cannot be found, 
than here in the Transition territory of Chris- 
tiania. By looking at Keilhau's map, it will 
be seen that isolated tracts of granite, syenite, 
eurite, and porphyry, occupy large spaces, 
more or less surrounded by slates, limestones, 
and sandstones of various characters. It is 
observable that throughout this district (with- 
out exception, according to Keilhau) granite 
is always associated with clay slate, porphyry 
with sandstone, and eurite with alum slate ; 
from which (corroborated by other reasons) 
he is led to imagine that by some chemical 
agency, which he expects the future progress 
of that science will elucidate, perfectly differing 
substances may in the course of time have 
been so completely changed into each other, 



IN NORWAY. 185 

that clay slate lias been converted into granite, 
sandstone into porphyry, &c, by this mere 
agency, without the addition of heat, or the 
introduction of any substance from without. 

Keilhau further advances against the Hut- 
tonian theory, that granite, when it comes in 
contact with gneiss, so gradually and insensibly 
blends with it, as often to render it impossible 
to say, where one begins, or the other termi- 
nates. This fact seems to be confirmed by 
Mr. Lyell, in his paper read before the British 
Association in 1837; and it is the more re- 
markable, when we consider the immense 
time that must have intervened between the 
formation of these rocks, according to all the 
usually received theories. The transition rocks 
rest unconformably upon the gneiss, which must 
therefore have been both deposited, and dis- 
turbed, before their deposition : while granite 
is in many places seen to cut through all the 
fossiliferous strata, and must consequently be 
younger. 



186 TWO SUMMERS 

Wherever granite thus cuts through the 
transition rocks, it invariably alters them to 
a greater or less extent, sometimes for but a 
foot or two, in one instance for nearly an 
English mile. This difference of visible effect 
is an argument urged against the Plutonists 
by Keilhau ; but it is surely not only easy to 
suppose, but necessary for the explanation of 
many other phenomena, that the molten 
masses, of which granite consisted, were pro- 
truded at very different degrees of tempera- 
ture, without taking into consideration the 
differing conditions, for conducting heat, of 
the rocks into which it was injected. It is, 
however, observable that though the effect 
of the intrusive granite is so great, that soft 
argillaceous beds are transformed into hard 
compact slate, and dark, lenticular limestone 
into crystalline marble (as at Gjellebeck) yet 
the dip and strike of the sedimentary strata 
remain alike unaltered. 

Extensive veins of Eurite porphyry, and 



IN NORWAY. 187 

of greenstone occur in the stratified beds near 
Christiania ; the character of which they 
always more or less alter, but never interfere 
with their strike or dip. The former usually 
lie as a sort of conformable bed between the 
layers of limestone and clay; and are wider 
and more irregular in their shape than the 
greenstone. The greenstone veins are narrow, 
and perfectly regular in their sides ; and cut 
through both the eurite and the fossiliferous 
strata, nearly at right angles to their strike, 
or in a direction about N. N. W., and S. S. E. 
They have not however disturbed the line of 
stratification, so that the differently coloured 
seams of the argillo-calcareous beds may be 
seen in a perfectly correct line on each side 
of the interposing dike. 

In giving the former veins the name of Eurite 
porphyry, Keilhau would wish to be under- 
stood as applying it to the whole class, which 
must be considered together in a geological 
point of view, notwithstanding they vary some- 



188 TWO SUMMERS 

what in mineralogical composition. Quartz is 
frequently so predominant in them, as to ren- 
der them by no means easily fusible ; though 
usually felspar is sufficiently predominant to 
justify the name. It appeared to me that the 
eurite occasionally spreads out over the surface, 
(as for instance, at Pipervig, near Christiania,) 
while the greenstone, from its superior hardness, 
stands out like a wall high above the softer 
transition rocks. 

It would seem from the phenomena now 
mentioned, that after the deposition of the 
calcareous beds, cavities were formed between 
the strata, into which the eurite was gently 
injected: and that subsequently, transverse 
fissures were effected, in the same masses 
(whether by desiccation, or by contraction of 
the earth's crust to accommodate itself to a 
globe diminishing in volume as it cooled) in 
a direction perhaps determined by electricity, 
which were eventually occupied by greenstone, 
protruded from beneath. 



IN NORWAY. 189 

In witnessing the immense extent of deri- 
vative rocks of the oldest age, which occupy 
the whole length and breadth of Norway, with 
the comparatively trifling exceptions already 
mentioned, one cannot help speculating, whence 
were they derived ? It surely is far from 
satisfactory to say that such enormous masses 
have been derived from the abrasion of pre- 
viously existing rocks, of which confessedly 
no trace now remains : for no one, I believe, 
in any country pretends to show existing 
granite older than gneiss. Time we give 
ad libitum : but what a vast granitic continent 
must have existed, to supply by its waste the 
enormous extent and thickness of the Scan- 
dinavian Fj elder ! what huge rivers, to convey 
the wasted particles and fragments, and deposit 
them over so wide an area ! 

But even granting all this, these vast ori- 
ginal mountain chains must have been both 
more extensive, and loftier, than the sediment 
derived from them (which constitutes our mo- 



190 TWO SUMMERS 

dern loftiest ranges) how then can they have so 
entirely disappeared from the surface, in any 
conceivable disturbance to which this Globe 
has been subjected ? they would surely have at 
least an equal chance of surviving any cata- 
strophe, as the inferior strata, formed at their 
feet from the abrasion of their surface. 

The ingenious hypothesis that much of the 
gneiss, though derived from granite, may in 
fact be said to be contemporaneous in formation 
with it, serves to remove some of the difficulty, 
but not all. According to this idea, granitic 
matter being protruded into warm, and slightly 
agitated water, such as probably constituted the 
primaeval Ocean, there crystallized into gra- 
nite, which was partly abraded, almost simul- 
taneously, and deposited in the form of gneiss. 
The apparent passage of these two rocks into 
each other, in the environs of Christiania, may 
be thus explained : but I confess that upon this, 
as upon a thousand other points connected with 
the fascinating science of Geology, very much 



IN NORWAY. 191 

appears to me to remain yet to be cleared up ; 
if ever it can be. 

I will conclude with repeating my hope that 
it will not be long ere this interesting and 
instructive district be visited by English Geo- 
logists, capable of decyphering and elucidating 
the rich, though obscure records it contains, 
of the earlier processes, by which the Almighty- 
Architect was pleased to bring our Globe into 
its present state of order and beauty. 

I cannot pretend to have made by any means 
a complete Tour of Sweden ; but having 
visited some of the most interesting geological 
localities, in the centre, the West, and the ex- 
treme South of that Kingdom, I will add a 
brief sketch of them, the rather as they lie little 
out of the direct road to the country I have more 
especially taken upon me to describe. A good 
Geological Map* of this portion of Sweden 

* Geognostisk Karta ofver Medlersta och Sodra Delarne af 
Sverige, af W. Hisinger. Stockholm. 1834. (Geological map 
of the Central and Southern portions of Sweden.) 



192 TWO SUMMERS 

has been published at Stockholm by Hisinger ; 
which the Geologist will do well to purchase : it 
is not dear, but is difficult to procure, except at 
Stockholm itself. 

Generally speaking, the country from Chris- 
tiania to Helsingborg consists of Gneiss. But 
near Wenersborg (at the South-western extre- 
mity of Lake Wenern) also at Kinnekulle, near 
Lidkoping, on the same Lake ; and again to the 
South, from Skofde to Falkoping, are some 
very remarkable protrusions of Trap, sur- 
rounded by fossiliferous strata similar to the 
transition rocks near Christiania. 

The extensive district here alluded to, lying 
between the vast Lakes Wenern and Wettern, is 
extremely fiat. Its base is Gneiss, horizontally 
stratified, and covered for the most part with a 
marshy, peaty soil, intermixed with boulders 
and gravel. It has evidently been under water 
at no very remote geological period ; and would 
be so again, were the gorge at Trollhaettan 
blocked up a few feet above its present level. 



IN NORWAY. 193 

The singular features of this district are well 
seen from the summit of any of the isolated 
trap rocks above mentioned, particularly from 
Kinnekulle : but the effect of closing the out- 
let of the immense body of waters collected in 
Lake Wenern (as it doubtless formerly was 
closed before the rocks at Trollhsettan were 
riven asunder) is best seen from Hunneberg 
or Halleberg, near Wenersborg. 

* These are two twin hills, with long, straight 
tops, from 300 to 500 feet in height, and com- 
posed of a kind of trap, resting on stratified 
limestone. They are now separated by a deep 
and narrow gorge, through which it is believed 
the waters of the Lake once flowed : but they 
have every appearance of having once been 
united. The Southern side of Hunneberg 
(which alone I had time to examine) presents 
a steep escarpment of trap rock, in some 
places rudely columnar. Beneath the trap lie 
the calcareous beds, bearing evidence of having 
been considerably altered by heat, but perfectly 

VOL. II. k 



194 TWO SUMMERS 

horizontal and undisturbed in their stratifica- 
tion; and seemingly extending some way into 
the hill under the trap. I suppose, therefore, 
that the latter must have been poured through 
a comparatively small fissure, in a very fluid 
state, and have then overflowed the limestone 
beds on all sides. 

The limestone is quarried for agricultural 
and domestic purposes : in the two quarries 
that I visited, I could observe that it frequently 
seemed to be calcined, was vesicular, and con- 
tained pyrites, and clusters of crystals, together 
with some curious depressed, spherical concre- 
tions. The only organic remains, that I saw, 
were a few imperfect Trilobites, and an abun- 
dance of that most singular little Crustacean, 
now extinct, the eyeless Battus. 

But Kinnekulle is a still more interesting 
point, both for the Geologist and picturesque 
Tourist. Although its height is only 900 feet 
above the sea; it yet from its insulated posi- 
tion, on the very shore of Lake Wenern, com- 



IN NORWAY. 195 

mands a very extensive and pleasing prospect 
over land and water. The borders of the Lake 
are too low to boast of grandeur; but many 
promontories that run far into its placid bosom, 
being well wooded, and occasionally occupied 
by noblemen's seats, afford an agreeable rest- 
ing place to the eye. On a very clear day, I 
could but just distinguish the opposite shore in 
one or two points. 

On approaching Kinnekulle from the near- 
est town, Lidkoping, you come first to a plat- 
form of Sandstone, resting on the universal 
Gneiss of this country. It is about seventy 
feet in thickness, and contains few or no dis- 
tinguishable fossils. Above this is a second 
platform, of Alum slate, fifty feet thick, also 
surrounding the central nucleus, but of course 
with a diminished diameter : numerous Baitus, 
and imperfect Trilobites, and crystals of alum 
are found in this bed. We ascend next to a 
third platform of reddish limestone, full of 
Orthoceratites of immense size, though not of 
k 2 



196 TWO SUMMERS 

many varieties : it is said to be 165 feet in 
thickness. And lastly, above all these Tran- 
sition beds, rises the trap, with some associated 
flinty slate, to a further height of 450 feet. 

I believe exactly the same order is observed 
in the analogous range of Billingen, near 
Skofde, and at Mosseberg, near Falkoping; 
but that the successive strata are thicker than 
at Kinnekulle. It is remarkable that in all 
these localities, the same as at Hunneberg, the 
stratification has apparently not been at all 
disturbed by the intrusion of the trap. 

The limestone of Kinnekulle is much em- 
ployed for building and ornamental purposes : 
specimens of it may be seen not only at Go- 
th enborg, but at much more distant places, as 
for instance, at Hamburg. It takes a tolerable 
polish ; and the Orthocerarites, with which it 
abounds, add much to its beauty, from the 
variety produced by the different sections of 
their chambers, which, as well as the Siphuncle, 
are usually cased with crystallized carbonate 



IN NORWAY. 197 

of lime. Any of the quarries on the sides of 
this mountain will supply the Geologist not 
only with this fossil, but also with abundant 
varieties of small Trilo bites, and Bathes ; and if 
he be industrious or fortunate, with still rarer 
specimens. Very fair quarters maybe obtained 
on the mountain, at a farmhouse called Ro- 
ssetter: and about three miles from it,»to the 
North, are the large Alum works of Honssetter. 

In addition to the localities here described, 
a similar limestone is quarried at Omsberg, 
on the Eastern shore of Lake Wettern; it is 
of a greenish grey colour, and among other 
fossils seems to contain many strongly striated 
Terebratulce. According to Hisinger's map of 
this mountain, a nucleus of granite replaces 
the trap of Kinnekulle : a little to the South 
of Omsberg is an interesting tract of Keuper 
sandstone. 

The line of the Gotha Canal, between Lakes 
Wettern and Hoxen, passes through transition 
rocks : and many good fossils were obtained 



198 TWO SUMMERS 

at Motala, Husbyfjoi, Berg, &c. during the 
formation of the canal. I did not, however, 
see any quarry, or good section, along this 
line ; and the only organic remains I found 
in any quantities, were the usual Battus. Be- 
sides these localities, it will be seen on referring 
to Hisinger's map, that there are numerous 
othei\ isolated patches of transition rocks, 
dispersed throughout this portion of Sweden, 
that stretch across in a direction S. E., and 
N. W. in a sort of band terminating in the 
islands of Gottland and Oland. 

Can we doubt that these rocks of a similar 
geological age, and containing similar fossils, 
were once more or less continuous ? and that 
subsequently, devastating floods have swept 
away the greater part of them, and denuded the 
fundamental Gneiss ? In the case of Kinne- 
kulle, and the other trap hills, we may imagine 
that the superfused igneous rock protected 
the strata from these destructive forces : their 
position with reference to the Gneiss, and their 



IN NORWAY. 199 

undisturbed bedding, forbidding us to suppose 

they can have been elevated above tlie reach of 

their action. 

As a further evidence of the long and violent 
* 

action of water over this district, posterior to 
the deposition of the latest rocks, though prior 
to the habitation of man, may be mentioned 
the well known Oasar, or Sand-oasar, heaps 
of gravel and pebbles, intermixed with large 
boulders, more or less rounded, and un- 
doubtedly derived from the older Scandinavian 
rocks. This formation of Baltic boulders, as 
it is now generally called, or Terrains de trans- 
port, according to French nomenclature, extends 
to the Southward, across the Baltic, far into 
central Germany; and in breadth, from the 
Eastern coast of Scotland and Norfolk, up to 
Moscow. But in this portion of Sweden, so 
near to its native seat, it attains great thick- 
ness, and forms (as its name implies) islands, 
and terraces, on which villages are built, and 
roads are carried. It has been thought that a 



200 TWO SUMMERS 

certain regularity of direction in the outline 
of these transported heaps may be observed ; 
as well as some approach to a stratification, or 
lamination of their contents : I do not dispute 
the facts, but I cannot confirm them by my 
own limited observation. 

I have already alluded to the enormous 
deposit of shells, identical with those still found 
in the adjoining sea, which may be seen at 
various spots near Uddevalla; but especially 
on the hill of Capellbacken, half a mile from 
the town, where they attain a height of 190 
feet above the sea. At J onserud near Gothen- 
borg, is a similar deposit, but of more limited 
extent, and only fifty or sixty feet above the 
sea. 

The Southern Province of Scania is a very 
interesting district, especially to an English 
Geologist ; from a great portion of it consisting 
of chalk and greensand, which are so beauti- 
fully developed in our own country. Unfor- 
tunately, however, the comparison of these 



IN NORWAY. 201 

distant localities of the same formations is 
rendered less satisfactory by the almost total 
absence of any good sections. The shores 
of Scania are very low, presenting every ap- 
pearance of having recently emerged from the 
sea; as various independent facts warrant us 
in concluding to be the case. 

The Geologist must not expect to find the 
bold cliffs of Dover, or the Isle of Wight. 
True chalk, in fact, is scarcely to be seen ; or 
only at Charlottenlund, and Ostratorp, on the 
Southern coast, and at Sallerup, near Malmo. 
About a couple of miles to the South of Mal- 
mo, at a place called Lim-hamn (i. e. " Lime 
haven' V they dig up on the shore, and burn, 
small masses of a greyish, hard, chalk marl. 
Among the heaps collected at the kiln, I found 
two or three species of Terebratulce, (chiefly 
ovalis and curvirostris) two or three Spatangi 
(Cor anguinum) a shark's tooth, said to be 
uncommon ; Ostrea vesicularis ; and numerous 
stalks of a species of Siphonia. 

k3 



202 TWO SUMMERS 

A little to tlie East of Ystad is the principal 
deposit of Greensand ; but here also good 
sections are sadly wanting. The surface of 
the country is low, and undulating, covered 
with a loose sandy soil, intermixed with the 
usual boulders of Gneiss, granite, and syenite. 
Several oval Tumuli, or Barrows, rise in this 
plain, and are universally ascribed to Odin by 
the natives. A small stream has cut through 
the loose soil, to a depth of about thirty feet ; 
and turns two mills at Svenstorp and Kopinge 
Molla, which are celebrated localities for Sca- 
nian fossils. It is, however, useless to expect 
to obtain any good specimen there now, unless 
there happen to be a quarry accidentally opened, 
or the Tourist be prepared to employ men for 
two or three days to dig. 

At Svenstorp Molla, below the loose sand 
are seen thin layers of hardish stone, with the 
dark green grains of silicate of iron, common 
to the Greensand formation. The pretty little 
Pecten pulchellus, and a few fragments and 



IN NORWAY. 203 

casts of others, were all the fossils I saw there. 
At Kopinge, the only place to search for speci- 
mens is in some pits on the side of a sand hill, 
made to keep the potatoes. After digging 
and delving there for two or three hours, I 
only succeeded in discovering a quantity of 
Dentalia, and small Belemnites ; with a few 
Pectens, and some indistinguishable fragments 
that crumbled to pieces immediately. Hisin- 
ger's " Lethsea Svecica," however, and Nilsson's 
" Petrificata Suecana," show that much better 
success has been obtained here, by employing 
better means. 

In the neighbourhood of Christianstad are 
several noted spots for fossils, such as Morby, 
the island of Ifo, Kjugestrand, and Balsberg : 
all of which Hisinger classes as chalk, though 
there is not the slightest appearance of chalk 
any where near, but only sand : and the fossils, 
as far as I am aware, would agree equally with 
the Greensand. I staid there several days, and 
saw enough to convince me that there are a 



204 TWO SUMMERS 

hundred spots as favourable for fossil hunting; 
as those that have acquired a name. The 
district has been little visited, and is somewhat 
difficult to penetrate from the abundance of 
Lakes : it is, however, on their shores that the 
fossils are chiefly found ; as there are no 
quarries, and few artificial excavations of any 
kind. 

By far the best locality for fossils that I 
visited in Scania, is Ignaberga, about eighteen 
miles to the North-east of Christianstad. Near 
this village is an extensive deposit of shells 
and corals, so pure and free from foreign 
substances, as to be burned for the lime, 
employed in household uses, being considered 
too expensive for manure. In the largest 
quarry that I examined, about a mile from 
Ignaberga, I found the bed worked to a depth 
of thirty feet. The greater part of this enor- 
mous mass of shells, consisted of broken 
fragments : but in the course of a few hours 
I spent in several of these quarries, I collected 



IN NORWAY. 205 

a great number of the pretty little Cranium 
striatum (including four or five specimens with 
both valves quite perfect) ; many Belemnites 
(mucronatus, and mammillatus) also quite per- 
fect, but without any trace of an Operculum ; 
several beautiful Terebratula Lyra, Ter. spathu- 
lata, &c; many Pectens and Plagiostoma; nu- 
merous spines and plates of Cidaris ; Chama 
Cornu Arietis ; Podopsis truncata ; various 
Oysters; and an infinity of small Corallines. 
A workman gave me three or four small shark's 
teeth; and told me they had thrown many 
away. 

From Ignaberga to Hor is about twenty 
miles ; the road is hilly, and pretty for so flat 
a country as Scania: some Basaltic rocks on 
the way deserve notice. A Scotchman keeps 
the inn at Hor, — where are Scotchmen not to 
be found ? and though he has fallen too much 
into the filthy and uncomfortable habits of his 
adopted country, still his house affords rather 
more comfort than the dirty hovels met with 



206 TWO SUMMERS 

in this part of Sweden. The Scanians have 
the character among their Swedish and Danish 
neighbours, of being the filthiest, coarsest, 
most uncivil and treacherous people, of the 
Scandinavian race. The picture may be a 
little overcharged : but I must confess that 
during my fortnight's tour among them, I 
met with much to confirm, and very little to 
gainsay, these severe charges. And as for 
eatables, even after my long experience of 
Norway, I scarcely know how I should have 
lived, if it had not been for eels, which, cold 
or hot, formed my daily dinner and supper. 

Immediately to the South of Hor, and as far 
as the Lake Ringsjon, lies a tract of lowish, 
undulating hills,* in the midst of the Gneiss 
rocks. They are composed of a more or less 
coarse sandstone, often containing rounded 
pebbles of quartz, so as to form a silicious brec- 
cia; and much resembling our millstone grit. 
Like it also, this stone is extensively quarried 
for grinding-stones ; and in certain spots con- 



IN NORWAY. 207 

tains abundant impressions of plants. Vege- 
table matter is indeed disseminated throughout 
the rock ; but nowhere so plentifully as to con- 
stitute coal. I found many pieces of carbonized 
wood ; tolerable specimens of two or three of 
the Ferns, named after Professor Nilsson, and 
peculiar, I believe, to this locality ; many Ca- 
lamites; and a few of the leaves, which are 
said to belong, and have every appearance of 
belonging, to Dicotyledonous trees. The geo- 
logical age of this formation is not yet deter- 
mined ; though by many it is referred to the 
Wealden : it appears to lie between the Lias 
and Greensand; that is, if it be allowed that the 
Coalfield of Hoganas really belong to the Lias, 
as a few trifling fossils would seem to indicate. 

The English coal owner need not fear the 
rivalry of the Hoganas mines, which are situat- 
ed about twelve miles to the North of Helsing- 
borg, near the entrance of the Sound. I was 
assured by the very intelligent chief engineer, 
named Peders, that there are only five seams 



208 TWO SUMMERS 

of coal, from one to seven inches thick, which 
last is the thickest yet discovered ! The greatest 
depth they have actually worked is about forty- 
five fathoms ; but they have bored nearly twice 
as deep, and found likely strata, when the 
water came in upon them, and stopped their 
progress. It could not possibly pay to work so 
poor beds, if they did not also raise excellent 
clay for fire bricks. The coal is not only defi- 
cient in quantity, but in quality : it seems im- 
perfectly carbonized, and contains much sul- 
phur. Few impressions of plants have been 
found in the associated beds ; but such as have 
been met with, are mostly curious and peculiar, 
and have been sent to Stockholm. In examin- 
ing the heaps at the pit mouth, I saw nothing 
but the stems of calamites, much resembling 
those of our own Culm measures, but without 
fronds; and no Ferns, &c. 

Before quitting Scania, the geologist should 
make a point of visiting Lund, the seat of an 
ancient archbishopric, and a considerable mo- 



IN NORWAY. 209 

dern University. In the Museum belonging to 
the latter is a good geological collection ; but a 
much more instructive and interesting one is 
possessed by the distinguished Professor Nilsson, 
to whom the Tourist who seeks for information 
should certainly endeavour to obtain an intro- 
duction. His collection contains the best spe- 
cimens of almost all the fossils found in Sweden : 
and the intelligent Professor's accompanying 
observations render their examination doubly 
agreeable and improving. 

Having mentioned the very unsatisfactory 
manner in which the chalk appears in Scania, 
I cannot but advertise the dabbler in geology 
(for the experienced geologist will be aware of 
the fact) that he will find this formation much 
better developed on the opposite coast of Den- 
mark, at Stevensklint, Faxoe, and in the 
Island of Moen. These localities have been 
generally described, with great accuracy, by 
Mr. Lyell. The Museum at Copenhagen pos- 
sesses excellent specimens of the organic re- 



210 TWO SUMMERS 

mains found there, which though agreeing in 
the main with the fossils of our own chalk, 
afford many peculiarities. In the Copenhagen 
Museum, for instance, may be seen fine and 
perfect specimens of the large Trochus Danicus, 
and Nautilus D aniens ; as well as the many 
corals peculiar to the Faxoe bed; also the 
pretty little Magus (Terehratula ?) pumila, abun- 
dant at Faxoe, but rare elsewhere. There 
are, likewise, in the same collection, many 
good examples of the Scanian fossils ; and the 
largest and the most perfect Olenus Tessini yet 
discovered. 

Those who are interested in the most recent 
formations, which either immediately preceded, 
or were contemporaneous with, the first appear- 
ance of man in these parts, will be much grati- 
fied by the inspection of the abundant specimens 
from what Dr. Forchhammer calls " the Qua- 
ternary Formation," as being subsequent to 
the " Tertiary." In the latter no trace of 
man's works is found ; in the former, pieces of 



IN NORWAY. 211 

rude pottery, boats, and household implements, 
are occasionally discovered. Great part of 
Denmark consists of this formation, none of the 
Danish Continent being older than the chalk : 
but the North-west coast of Jutland, near Ven- 
cyssel, appears to be the most favourable point 
for its observation. There, at the promontory 
of Robsnses, Dr. Forchhammer has found these 
recent strata, which are usually horizontal, sud- 
denly thrown up to an angle of 70° : and exhi- 
biting a thickness that he cannot calculate less 
than 8000 feet. 

Perhaps the most interesting phenomenon 
connected with the " Quaternary" deposits is 
the occurrence of Martorv, or Marine Peat ; 
which seems to form a connecting link between 
our Peat Mosses, and the German Brown coal : 
the different degrees of compression alone, ap- 
parently, causing relative distinctions of cha- 
racter. 

If the geologist be desirous to render his sur- 
vey of this part of Europe still more complete, 



212 TWO SUMMERS 

he will find the Islands of Bornholm (of which 
Dr, Forchhammer has published a map and 
account) and of Gottland, well deserving his 
attention. The former possesses a considerable 
deposit of coal, supposed to be of the same age 
as that of Hoganas : in the latter, there is an 
extensive formation of Transition limestone, 
with a peculiar sandstone, and a dubious Oolite, 
all of them rich in fossils, of which several ap- 
pear to be confined to that Island. 



IN NORWAY. 



213 



CHAPTER XII. 

Recommendations of a Tour in Norway — Character of Norwe- 
gians — Attachment to England — How far Norway is suited 
to emigrants — Wages and mode of life — Wants of the body 
better provided for than those of the mind — Nothing done 
for posterity — The Constitution ; its advantages and defects 
— Dissimilarity between the Swedes and Norwegians, in cha- 
racter and institutions — Carl Johann — Prince Oscar — Fear 
of Russia — Sketch of social system — Clergy — Ritual and 
tenets of the Lutheran church — Size of parishes — Annual 
visitation — Compulsory Education — National finances — 
Want of circulating medium — General results — Conclusion. 

If, in the above slight sketches of my visits to 
Scandinavia, I have at all succeeded in convey- 
ing to the reader an adequate idea of the im- 
pressions they made on me, he will readily 
understand that I look back to them with feel- 
ings of pleased and grateful recollection. The 
scenery of Norway is highly picturesque ; to 



214 TWO SUMMERS 

the lover of tlie wild and grand it is pre-emi- 
nently attractive. Many of its features, as, 
for instance, its Fjords, are peculiar : and no 
less so are its moral and political features, its 
modes of living and domestic liabits. 

There is, in fact, a freshness and strange- 
ness about the country and its inhabitants, 
which to one only conversant with those nations 
whose more marked peculiarities have been 
worn off by constant intercourse, is highly de- 
lightful. In such a country, and among such 
a people, it will be readily understood that a 
thousand details of beauty will daily be seen, a 
thousand adventurers of interest or amusement 
be met with, which though contributing greatly 
to the Tourist's every day's enjoyment,, it is 
scarcely possible, or might even appear trifling 
to commit to paper. 

Then what I confess to be always a great 
addition to the recommendations of a Tour in 
my eyes, is the honest and kindly character of 
the Norwegians. ¥ Who is there, that has tra- 



IN NORWAY. 215 

veiled through central Europe for instance, that 
has not felt it to be a great drawback to his 
pleasures, to be made daily aware of the un- 
friendly spirit with which an Englishman is 
usually regarded by the French, or to see him- 
self cheated and laughed at by a people whom 
he cannot help so much despising, as the 
Italians ! 

In Norway, on the contrary, the English 
character stands very high : and it will be the 
Englishman's own fault, if he be not both 
respected and liked. In the few instances I 
knew of my countrymen getting* into serious 
quarrels with the natives, it was invariably 
the Englishman's fault ; and when it did not 
arise from misapprehension (in consequence 
of his ignorance of the language, as well as 
the laws and customs of the land in which 
he was travelling) was sure to be connected 
with that besetting sin of Britons, the deter- 
mination to nog the little grass-fed ponies of 
Norway up and down its precipitous hills, at 



216 TWO SUMMERS 

the same rate that our powerful horses carry 
the mail along our magnificent roads. I have 
already expressed my sentiments as to the 
unfairness, and unkindness, and I may add, 
the impolicy of this conduct ; for the Norwe- 
gian will not tamely bear this treatment of 
his beast : and if the stranger persist in it, 
he will be sure to get into constant altercations 
at every Station, and eventually most probably 
into an unpleasant scrape, as the laws are 
sufficiently severe on this subject. 

I also heard of a few instances where Eng- 
lishmen fancied themselves cheated by the 
Norwegians : some of these instances I had 
an opportunity of investigating, and satisfied 
myself that the supposed grievance was founded 
solely on their own inability to understand, or be 
understood by, the natives ; or that they were 
imposed upon by their own servant, in whose 
hands their ignorance completely placed them. 
I do not mean to assert that trifling instances 
of overcharge never occur, in the towns espe- 



IN NORWAY. 217 

cially : but I can only say that during eight 
or ten months I have spent in Norway, tra- 
versing its entire length and breadth, I never 
met with any thing that could be called a 
serious case of imposition or deception. What 
foreigner can say as much for England ? 

So much for my experience of the lower 
and middle classes, with whom the Tourist, 
merely passing through the country, mostly 
comes in contact. But I have also mixed 
a good deal with the upper ranks of Norwe- 
gians : and ungrateful indeed should I be, if 
I did not add my humble testimony not only 
of the admiration and affection they universally 
expressed towards my country, but also of 
the kindness and hospitality they showed to 
myself individually. 

An observant Englishman can scarcely visit 
any land without being impressed with the 
conviction that a large portion of the liberties 
of the world is at stake in the safety or fall 
of our diminutive Island : but in Norway 

VOL. II. L 



218 TWO SUMMERS 

more especially will lie be made aware of tlie 
universal conviction of the people, that Eng- 
land is the Palladium of their liberty and inde- 
pendence. What a change of relative position 
a few centuries have produced, when that 
mighty Empire which now broods, as it were, 
over so many millions from India to Canada, 
should be implored to grant a scanty portion 
of its protecting pinions to the not degenerate 
descendants of a people who once ravaged her 
shores, and seized her throne, at will ! 

I must, however, confess that, attached as 
I became to the country and its inhabitants, 
my admiration is not so indiscriminate, as to 
blind me to its deficiencies, or to view it as an 
El dorado for emigrants, or to recommend it 
for imitation in all its institutions, as a late 
and intelligent Tourist has done, whose exagge- 
rated partiality is universally laughed at by 
the Norwegians themselves. 

I do not doubt that a certain number of 
steady and industrious young men, with suffi- 



IN NORWAY. 219 

cient capital to purchase a small estate, might 
provide themselves and their families with all 
the common necessaries of life, more easily in 
Norway, than in an old and overstocked coun- 
try like England. But then, it must be borne 
in mind that but few could be so accommo- 
dated. The extent of uncultivated land in 
Norway is indeed great ; but its position and the 
circumstances of its climate, render it also un- 
cultivatable : the failure of the crops for so 
many successive seasons, in many of the higher 
Straths, proves that the point of profitable cul- 
tivation in an average of years has been passed. 

The quantity of good arable land is mostly 
confined to the Vallies, and is small. A patch 
of such land is indispensable : for, in Norway, 
there is no opportunity of selling one article 
of produce to purchase another : every master 
of a family must produce every thing that 
he requires, on his own land. The very trifling 
superfluities he will have to dispose of, after 
feeding all those by whose labour they are 
l 2 



220 TWO SUMMERS 

obtained, must go to procure the few articles 
of colonial produce lie can afford to consume, 
and to pay his taxes. 

Then, for six or seven months of the year,, 
no out-door work can be done : for the other 
half of the year, I have already indicated 
what incessant and severe labour must be 
encountered. An intending emigrant should 
therefore well reckon the cost of these various 
drawbacks, before he rashly quits any situation 
in which he is but tolerably well off. The 
demand for casual labour is too precarious 
to be depended on ; and the work expected is 
both too severe, and too poorly requited, to 
tempt an English labourer from even the 
most poverty-stricken of our districts. 

In winter time there is no call for extra 
labour, beyond that which is supplied by each 
Farmer's own family. During the harvest 
work can generally be procured, at the rate 
of from 5d. to 8d. besides victuals, for a day 
of sixteen hours of hard toil. Sometimes 



IN NORWAY. 221 

taskwork can be got : I found the men paid 
thus at Rogstad, in the autumn of 1837. They 
received 16 shillings (or about 7d.) for eyery 
thirty sheaves of barley, that they cut, and 
tied, and fixed on the tall stakes, which are 
placed for this purpose at proper intervals, 
throughout every corn field in Norway. Eight 
sheaves are stuck, one above the other, on each 
stake : but a man must work very hard, and 
the corn must stand well tip and thick, for 
him to be able to earn an English shilling. 
He is besides fed ; which may be reckoned 
about 5d. more : at least the men who are 
employed to look after the floating timber, 
where it is delayed by Fosses or shallows, 
usually receive a mark, or 10^. a day, without 
victuals, or half a mark, if with food. 

The only labourers in Norway who can be 
considered well off are the " Housemen;" a 
small number of whom are attached to every 
considerable farm. They have a house and 
' plot of ground, with summer pasturage, and 



222 TWO SUMMERS 

the use of the adjoining forest for timber and 
fuel, rent free : for these advantages they are 
bound to give a certain number of days' labour 
to the proprietor, whenever he requires it. 
These situations are however so few, and so 
much sought after, that the most industrious 
labourer has usually long to wait before he can 
obtain one. 

One of my chief objections to the Norwe- 
gian character is in a great measure connected 
with this very abundance of the commonest 
necessaries of life which the owners of the 
land certainly can command. The comparative 
facility with which their sensual wants to a 
certain extent can be satisfied, makes them 
pay far too much attention to the body, too 
little to the mind. Eating and drinking are 
of infinitely too great importance in Norway : 
while intellectual pleasures seem very little 
regarded. 

The power of reading is very general, through 
a compulsory system I shall shortly have occa- 



IN NORWAY. 223 

sion to allude to ; but except in the towns, 
where the newspapers afford the chief field 
for its exercise, little advantage seems to be 
made of it. In the country, and during the 
summer, at least, it is very rare to see any 
Norwegian, of any station, employed in reading: 
and the very scanty supply of books that a 
Norwegian house ever contains, proves the fact. 

It is, no doubt, also dependent on this neces- 
sity for constant labour, that the Norwegians 
appear to have no peculiar sports, or country 
amusements whatever. I never saw them 
engaged in any pastime : nor could I hear of 
any national game. Yfhen even they fish, 
or shoot, it is done entirely for the pot, not 
for pleasure. This is not to be wondered at. 
It is easy to understand that after a week of 
such incessant toil, as their position renders 
imperative, rest alone is a sufficient enjoyment ; 
and the absence of exertion, with the sedentary 
relaxations of tobacco and spirits, all that the 
body requires. 



224 TWO SUMMERS 

But how fares it with the mind, under such 
a system ? how can the intellectual energies 
be exerted, and improved, enlarged, exalted 
by that exertion ? how in short can all that 
dignifies man above the beasts that eat, and 
fatten, and perish, and that makes him partaker 
of a better and higher life than that of mere 
physical existence, be adequately promoted? 
It is very possible, indeed probable, that during 
their long winters these Northern people may 
both read and amuse themselves, much more 
than they do during their brief summers. 
But it is impossible that their amusements 
even at that period, as well as their general 
national character, should not be stamped with 
more or less of the unintellectual features 
impressed on them by the peculiarities of their 
daily life. 

The necessity of providing for their daily 
existence makes them live only for the present, 
not for posterity. If they were swept away 
from the face of the earth, the Norwegians 



IN NORWAY. 225 

would leave behind them no monument of 
human skill, or labour, or intellect, to tell 
another generation that a great people had 
so long tenanted the wide extent of Scandi- 
navia. Nature's monuments would indeed 
still remain : Norway's Fj elder and Fjords 
would still claim the homage of the admirer 
of the sublime and beautiful. But no work 
of public utility or ornament — (its two or three 
cathedrals can scarcely be reckoned an excep- 
tion) — no achievement in Science or Literature, 
wherewith the human mind of one period 
holds converse with the mind of all times, 
would exist to excite the regrets and admira- 
tion of the future wanderer on these shores. Not 
only the mighty empires of Egypt and Rome, 
but even the petty states of Greece, have left 
records of their existence, which must endure 
as long as the Arts are cultivated, or Letters 
are preserved, among men : whereas a single 
century of oblivion would obliterate all that 
the Norwegians have yet done for Posterity ! 
l 3 



226 



TWO SUMMERS 



By many perhaps, their famous Constitution 
of 1814* will be considered the most valuable 
contribution that the Norwegians have ren- 
dered to the liberties of their fellow men, as 
well as the best claim to their admiration. It 
bears evident marks of the haste with which 
it was concocted, having been ostensibly pre- 
pared, within a very few days, on the exigency 
of the moment : although doubtless it was 
mainly modelled on the many previous attempts 
at Constitutions, that originated in the French 
Revolution ; and in fact, is said to have been 
in embryo existence some time before. 

* I dare not affix the date of the month, as well as of the 
year, this being even yet a subject of great and bitter debate. 
The Constitution was proclaimed by the Norwegians on the 
17th of May, 1814: it received its sanction from the King, 
and assembled Storthing, on the 4th of November following. 
Accordingly, the former anniversary is celebrated with great 
enthusiasm by the People, to show that they consider they owe 
their liberties to themselves alone ; the latter is observed by 
the Government and its subordinates, in maintenance of the 
doctrine that their authority, if not derived from, at least re- 
quires the concurrence of the Sovereign. 



IN NORWAY. 227 

It is essentially democratic ; too much so, it 
would seem, to be long compatible with the 
existence of a Monarchy, in any but so 
small a kingdom as Norway, and in such 
peaceful times as it has hitherto encountered. 
Were it exposed to the test of extended power, 
or wealth, or foreign aggression, my opinion is 
that it would fail, or at least require great mo- 
difications. Indeed, all well-informed Nor- 
wegians with whom I have conversed, confess 
that it contains many faults both of omission 
and of commission. At the same time, it has 
in the main worked so well hitherto, that they 
naturally fear lest in altering any of the objec- 
tionable parts, they might lose some of the 
essentials. 

Their attachment to the " Ground-Law," as 
it is called, and their jealousy of the Swedes, 
with whom they are now linked, after having 
been so often and so long at war with them, 
are equally excessive. At the same time, with 
all their democratic tendencies and their anti- 



228 TWO SUMMERS 

pathy to Sweden, the great mass of the Norwe- 
gians have uniformly expressed, both publicly 
and privately, great attachment to their Sove- 
reign, Carl Johann, as he styles himself, though 
christened Jean Baptiste Julian Bernadotte, 
and raised by his talent and fortune to the 
dignities of Marshal of France and Prince of 
Ponte Corvo. His manners are highly attrac- 
tive; and during the last winter (of 1838-39) 
that he spent at Christiania, he personally won 
golden opinions from all ranks ; although not a 
whit the more for that, would they accede to 
the propositions made to the then sitting Stor- 
thing, in his name. 

The power of the Executive certainly ap- 
pears to be too much limited : every thing that 
can fence in, and secure the liberties of the 
people, has been devised : but many other most 
material points have been overlooked. No one 
connected with the Ministry, in any degree, 
or with the Court, or in the receipt of a pension, 
can be elected to the Storthing, which, be it 



IN NORWAY. 229 

remembered, is both Lords and Commons. By 
the sixty-second article of the Ground-Law it 
is provided, (it is written in French, as well as 
in Norsk,) " Les Membres du Conseil d'Etat, 
et les fonctionnaires employes a leurs bureaux ; 
les Officiers de la Cour et ses pensionnaires ne 
pourront etre nommes Representans." 

By this overstrained jealousy, the Storthing 
is not only deprived of the talents of many of 
the ablest and best men ; but its labours are 
often greatly protracted, and the business in- 
completely and slovenly performed, which might 
be obviated by the presence of men possessed 
of official information, and official habits of 
business. 

The time that intervenes between the 
sessions of the Storthing, is another serious 
objection. From the same jealousy, nothing of 
importance is allowed to be done except by the 
Storthing ; and as it only meets once in every 
three years, on the first of February, useful and 
necessary measures are often grievously delayed. 



230 TWO SUMMERS 

This inconvenience is already much felt : and 
will be yearly more sensible, with the progres- 
sive advance of the country ; until at length it 
will imperatively require alteration. The ob- 
jection is, that on account of the distances 
that many of the Members have to travel, and 
the badness of the roads, it would be impossible 
for them to meet oftener. But let them con- 
tinue to improve their communications, as it is 
their duty to do, and this objection will gradu- 
ally lose its force : while the Members being so 
liberally paid, that most of them save money 
during their attendance, the worldly circum- 
stances even of the poorest are not injured by it. 

The Criminal Law of Norway confessedly 
needs great improvement : it is both defective, 
and far too severe, for modern ideas of legisla- 
tion. The principal labour of the last Session 
of the Storthing (in 1839) was its correction 
and melioration. Much difference of opinion 
existed as to the extent of improvement effected 
by the New Law : however, the king refused 



IN NORWAY. 231 

his assent to it, and thus this desirable reform 
is put off for at least three years. The king 
has the power of refusing his assent to any 
measure twice : but if the same identical mea- 
sure passes three successive Storthings, it then 
becomes ipso facto the law of the land. This 
was the way in which the hereditary nobility 
of Norway was abolished, against the strenuous 
opposition of the king and court. 

Carl Johannes motive, in withholding his as- 
sent to the proposed alterations in the Criminal 
Law, was understood to be his wish to assimi- 
late them to the improvements intended to be 
introduced into the Swedish Code by the Diet 
now (1840) sitting at Stockholm. Ever since 
he came to the throne, it has been his evident 
and natural object to amalgamate, as far as 
possible, the two nations so unexpectedly sub- 
mitted to his sway. How far he will succeed 
with such very discordant materials, as he has 
to deal with, remains to be proved, but 1 think 
may be guessed. 



232 TWO SUMMERS 

It is difficult to imagine two people so nearly 
connected, by position and origin, more dis- 
similar than the Swedes and Norwegians. In 
Norway is a nearly pure democracy, with a very 
limited king as its chief magistrate : no nobility: 
a perfectly free press : an equality of succession 
among the sons to the paternal property ; and 
consequently an equalization of estates, and 
those small. In Sweden on the contrary, is a 
powerful monarchy ; a very numerous nobility ; 
with the feudal law of succession. The Norwe- 
gians are consequently, (speaking generally) a 
sturdy, but rather rough, race of honest re- 
publicans : while the Swedes, it must confessed, 
possess many more of the graces and accom- 
plishments, contaminated also, unfortunately, 
with the vices of civilization. 

It is sufficiently clear which of these two dis- 
similar states is most likely to find favour in a 
king's eyes, in his attempt to blend them to- 
gether. However, I feel well convinced, that 
if their institutions are to be assimilated, Swe- 



IN NORWAY. 233 

den must meet Norway much more than half- 
way. The sturdy democrat is not likely to 
yield all to the more polished aristocrat : be- 
sides, the superiority of the Norwegian institu- 
tions, in many respects, and their evident in- 
fluence on the national prosperity, are too de- 
cided, not to be palpable to both people. 

Carl Johann has renewed his so often rejected 
proposition, to be discussed (and rejected) in 
the next Storthing, to give the Sovereign an 
absolute Veto. He supports his proposal with 
great earnestness, but not very conclusive reason- 
ing. Another wish of his is to have the power 
of Naturalization, which has hitherto been de- 
nied him, from a fear lest he should fill all the 
offices with needy Swedish Nobles. By the 
Ground-Law none but a Norwegian can occupy 
a post in the Norwegian Government: but if 
the king possessed this power of Naturalization, 
he could confer them upon any foreigner ; that 
is, provided he be not a Monk or a Jew ; for 
on the very first page of this ultra-liberal Con- 



234 TWO SUMMERS 

stitution it is decreed (Art. 2.) a Les Ordres des 
Jesuites et des Moines ne sont point toleres 
dans le Royaume : les Juifs sont aussi desor- 
mais, comme ci-devant, exclus du Royaume." 

A third pointy upon which Carl Johann used 
to feel very strongly, he seems to have at 
length given up; rather, most probably, from 
seeing the impossibility of ever carrying it, 
than from any change in his convictions or 
sentiments : I mean the restoration of an 
hereditary nobility. However natural, and, 
as it would seem to us, almost necessary an 
adjunct to an hereditary monarchy, such a 
class may be, it hardly could exist long with 
the Norwegian Law that divides every father's 
property in equal shares among his sons, with 
half portions to the daughters. 

The necessary effect of this law is to bring 
down the great mass of properties to an average 
size capable of maintaining a family, by the 
labour of its members. Some little variation 
in amount is necessarily produced by the 



IN NORWAY. 



235 



occasional centring of several properties in 
one, or the marriage of an heiress, or the 
operation of the Odel-barnsret.* But these 
circumstances only interfere for a time with the 
natural effect of the Law, which has practically 
reduced the great majority of Norwegian 
estates to this standard. Much below it, they 
evidently cannot fall : as if a son^s share be 
not sufficient to maintain him, with the severest 
labour, he must sell it for what he can get, 
and endeavour to support himself in some 
other way. 

* The term Odel, evidently nearly allied to the Teutonic 
Adel, or Edel, signifies an independent proprietor, free from 
all suit or service or acknowledgement whatever, to any supe- 
rior. And the " Odel-barnsret" is an ancient privilege belonging 
to this class, whereby the eldest son may (if he is enabled by 
marriage or any other means so to do) pay off his brothers' and 
sisters' shares, at a fair valuation, and retain the family pro- 
perty ; or in case of sale, the next of kin may claim the family 
estate, within five years, upon repayment of the purchase 
money, and the sums expended on improvements. Such is the 
natural prejudice in favour of retaining properties in the same 
line, which no legislation can utterly eradicate, that notwith-* 
standing the strictest enactments, the valuations are said to be 
invariably made greatly in favour of the eldest son. 



236 TWO SUMMERS 

Such, a state of things, however, is clearly 
incompatible with an hereditary nobility ; the 
essence of which is not only the preference 
secured to one son over the rest, but the pre- 
eminence of its possessor over the inferior 
ranks by whom he is surrounded. In corrobo- 
ration of this it may be mentioned, that when 
the hereditary nobility were abolished, although 
" Fidei Commissa," or entails, were then under 
certain circumstances permitted, yet there were 
only three noble families in Norway, and those 
of foreign extraction. 

At Carl Johannes advanced time of life (he 
was born in January, 1764) he cannot pos- 
sibly expect to effect many more changes : 
what may be the fate of his Son is open to 
much speculation. Many contingencies that 
we can foresee as probable, and doubtless 
many more which no human foresight can guess 
at, may arise to influence still more impor- 
tant destinies than those of the Sovereign of 
• Scandinavia. 



IN NORWAY. 237 

Prince Oscar has hitherto kept much aloof 
from public affairs ; or rather, it is said, has 
been so kept by the inexplicable jealousy of his 
Father. But he is understood to possess consi- 
derable talents, with a more liberal system of 
politics than his Sire ; and has at any rate 
made himself extremely beloved among all clas- 
ses. His accession, therefore, would, I doubt 
not, be very popular : and I do not believe 
there is the slightest foundation for the strange 
notion, entertained by a late Traveller in Swe- 
den, before referred to, namely, of a partition 
between the two lately united kingdoms, which 
would give Norway to Prince Oscar, and re- 
store Sweden to the old line of the Yasas. I 
am convinced that no such idea exists among 
any considerable party in the whole Scandina- 
vian Peninsula. 

I much fear, however, that there may be far 
more foundation for Mr. Laing's suspicion that 
Russia would be likely to take the first favour- 
able opportunity of seizing parts, at least, of 



238 TWO SUMMERS 

Sweden and Norway. A very general appre- 
hension of some such design is certainly en- 
tertained in the North; although no one, 
that I ever heard of, attempts to justify it 
on his plea, that she requires them for a 
port, to enable her to supply her subjects more 
conveniently with colonial articles ! On the 
same plea any highwayman might justify his 
measures to supply himself with what he 
wanted. 

The Northern Bear is indeed a fearful 
neighbour : and not only the general policy 
of Russia, but her particular measures in 
Finmark and Nordland, as well as her lately 
constructed fortifications within sight of Stock- 
holm, may well rouse the fears of so weak a 
power as Norway. Her army is but 12,000 
men : and though the Norwegians are undoubt- 
edly brave, they have not a military turn ; at 
least, whether seen on guard, or ,at their annual 
exercise, they have any thing but a military 
tournure. They are much better adapted for 



IN NORWAY. 



239 



sailors : but their present marine is absolutely 
nothing.* 

In short, they must, in case of Russian ag- 
gression, trust to foreign assistance ; and 
England is the country to which they univer- 
sally look, as, I trust, they would not look in 
vain. To this aid, backed by the proverbial 
courage of mountaineers and the natural diffi- 
culties of the country, and above all protected 
by the righteous Judge of a righteous cause, 
will the liberties of this interesting country owe 
their preservation, should they ever unfortu- 
nately be attacked. I confess that my own 
strong impression was, that the last Norwegian 
would die on the last mountain side, sooner than 
yield the liberty he prizes so highly : but I was 
sorry to see that such was not the conviction 
pf the best informed Norwegians themselves. 

It is not very easy for a stranger to acquire 

* Every Norwegian is liable to serve, for five or seven 
years, up to the age of twenty -seven for the army, and thirty 
for the navy: after which age, he is exempt, except incase of 
invasion. 



240 TWO SUMMERS 

altogether just, or perfectly accurate notions of 
the internal economy of so peculiar a country, 
, as Norway. But from what I could observe of 
the constitution and working of their adminis- 
trative system, it appeared to me well adapted 
to their social state. Norway is divided for all 
civil purposes into the four Stifts or Provinces 
of Agershuus (or Christiania), Trondhjem, Ber- 
gen, and Christiansand ; which are subdivided 
into seventeen Amts, or Counties ; and these 
again into forty-four Fogderies, or Bailiwicks. 
Each of these is respectively presided over by 
an Amtmand, and a Foged. All the higher 
duties of the magistracy, the collection of the 
revenue, the care of the roads, the superinten- 
dence of the postmasters and innkeepers, and 
such like, devolve upon the Amtmen, and 
Fogeds. Under them is a Lensman in every 
parish : he is usually the most respectable and 
intelligent man of the district ; and it is to 
him that the Traveller should have recourse, 
in case he meet with any difficulty, or in- 



IN NORWAY. 241 

jury. Such, of the Bonder as are members 
of the Storthing, are usually chosen from 
among the Lensmen. 

There are no ambulatory judges of assize 
as with us ; but in the principal towns are 
judicial courts, with a supreme court in Chris- 
tiania, called the " Hojeste Ret/' from whose 
decisions, I believe, there is no appeal, although 
the judges in that, as in every court, are liable 
to have actions brought against them, not only 
for corrupt judgments but also for ignorance, 
or incompetency. This responsibility is by no 
means nominal : they are often severely fined, 
or even deposed. 

Throughout the length and breadth of the 
land are numerous Sorenskrivers, whose office 
is of the greatest practical importance, in 
consequence of the Norwegian law of succes- 
sion, so often mentioned. The Sorenskriver 
superintends the valuation and division of pro- 
perty, to insure its just distribution among the 
heirs of every deceased proprietor — no trifling 

VOL. II. m 



242 TWO SUMMERS 

matter — besides executing various subordinate 
legal duties. 

But the most peculiar court of justice in 
Norway is that named u Eoiiigelses-Commis- 
sion that is, Court of Reconcilement, or 
Arbitration. There is such a court in every 
parish : it consists of three persons, chosen 
by the parishioners, of whom the Priest is 
almost invariably the chief, with the Church- 
wardens, or the Lensman, as his Assessors. 
Every intended litigation must in the first 
instance be submitted to this Commission, 
before it can be brought into a higher court. 
The parties are there personally heard \ no pro- 
fessional person being allowed to appear ; their 
evidence is canvassed ; and a statement event- 
ually drawn up in which both parties agree, 
and sign. The Assessors then endeavour to 
reconcile the parties, usually by proposing 
some middle course. If both submit to the 
arbitration, the decision is final : if one demurs, 
he can carry the case to a higher tribunal, 



IN NORWAY. 243 

but at the risk of having the expenses to pay, 
should it be decided against him ; and in no 
case can any fresh facts be brought forward, 
other than what are contained in the Protocol 
of the Forligelses-Commission. 

Whether any modification of this institution 
could be beneficially adopted in a country like 
ours, I am not prepared to say : but I think 
there can be no doubt, that in a country like 
Norway it is productive of much more good, 
than evil, as tending to cut short a great deal 
of litigation. Strict legal justice is very pro- 
bably not so much aimed at by a tribunal so 
constituted, as equity and concord. But a 
great deal depends upon the personal character 
of the Assessors, and especially of the Priest : 
if he be intelligent and pains-taking, the result 
is highly satisfactory ; but if he be old and 
stupid, as will sometimes be the case, material 
facts are frequently omitted, and the whole 
case is sent up in so incomplete, jumbled, and 
bungling a form, that I have heard Amtmen 
m 2 



244 TWO SUMMERS 

declare it is totally impossible to ascertain its 
real merits. 

The influence of the Clergy is necessarily 
very great in all countries : but many circum- 
stances contribute to render it still more 
powerful in Norway, than ordinary. There 
being scarcely any resident gentry, the Priest 
inevitably concentrates in himself nearly all 
the influence attached to superiority of educa- 
tion, manners, knowledge, station, and wealth. 
The Norwegian Priesthood are uniformly 
well educated; and, for the country, well en 
dowed : in all these points, there is rarely any 
one to compete with them in a rural parish, 
except perhaps a Sorenskriver, or more distant 
Foged. 

But besides these important sources of 
power, belonging to them as resident gen- 
tlemen, the Priests possess a degree of au- 
thority, attached to their ministerial character, 
beyond that of any other Protestant clergy. 
The Scandinavian Church is, of course, Lu- 



IN NORWAY. 245 

theran : and it is well known that tlie Lutherans 
have thought fit to retain much more both of 
the tenets and outward observances of the 
Romish Church, than any other body of Pro- 
testants that separated from that communion. 
Among other things that they have retained, 
are the name, the vestments, and a large portion 
of the ministerial authority, independent of 
the personal character of the Priest. For thus 
he is always called; and when he celebrates 
"the High Mass," as it is also styled, at the 
High Altar, he wears a linen vestment, with 
an embroidered cross, reaching from his neck 
to his feet, precisely similar to those seen in 
Roman Catholic chapels. 

I confess there is much in the public service 
of the Sabbath, as performed in Lutheran 
churches, with which I was dissatisfied : there 
is far too much singing, far too little reading 
of God's Word, far too little common prayer. 
As few of my countrymen have had equally 
good opportunities of observing the manner 



246 TWO SUMMERS 

in which, the Sabbath duties are discharged 
in Norway, I will briefly describe the order 
usually followed, which with little variation 
is the same in all country parishes, 

The men and women are seated, in their 
best attire, on separate sides of the aisle : 
a large proportion of the building is invariably 
occupied by the choir, which is railed off, and 
contains the High Altar, bearing two huge 
candlesticks, with a metallic receptacle for the 
Host, and surmounted by a sort of painted 
shrine, with gilded figures of the Virgin Mary, 
and saints ; the whole, in short, savouring 
strongly of Romanism. 

At the- appointed hour (which is usually 
late, as there is never a second service in the 
country at least) an officer called the deacon, 
♦ but not in holy orders, comes forward to the 
church rails, and. repeats a short exhortation 
to prayer> concluding with the Lord's Prayer ; 
immediately after which two long Psalms are 
sung by the entire congregation. 



IN NORWAY. 247 

The Priest meanwhile has up to this period 
been either in the vestry, or kneeling at the 
Altar, engaged in his own private devotions, 
but with his back to the people, and taking- 
no share in the service. He now turns round, 
and from the Altar reads the Collect and 
Epistle for the day : the Epistles and Gospels 
are the same as ours ; the collects are different, 
and somewhat longer. Next follows another 
Psalm ; after which the Priest reads (he ought, 
if he can, to chant it) the Gospel. A fourth 
Psalm is sung ; during which the Priest mounts 
the pulpit, and proceeds to deliver a discourse, 
either extempore or from manuscript, on a 
subject invariably taken from the Gospel of 
the day. When he has concluded, he gives 
out the banns of marriage, together with other 
notifications, which in a rural parish are often 
of a very miscellaneous character. The service 
concludes with a dismission Psalm. 

Such is the ordinary routine : but in the 
country, ihere usually are, during the summer, 



248 TWO SUMMERS 

many occasional services, such, as baptisms, 
administration of the holy communion, mar- 
riages, catechizing of the children, &c. which 
are all performed during the public service, 
and tend greatly to lengthen it; as appro- 
priate Psalms are sung to each, in addition 
to the five or six ordinary Psalms, already 
mentioned. 

The public formularies of the Lutheran 
Church decidedly hold the doctrine of Con- 
substantiation, with regard to Christ's presence 
in the Sacrament of the Last Supper : but the 
generality of the Clergy are said (I believe 
truly) in reality to entertain opinions on that 
point, still further removed from the Romish 
Church, and nearer to ours. Those who wish 
to receive the Sacrament, merely signify their 
intention to the Priest on his coming to the 
church, any Sabbath morning : they go with 
him into the vestry, where they are " shrived/' 
and receive absolution; and then kneeling 
round the Altar, receive the Sacrament in 



I 

IN NORWAY. 249 

both kinds, as with us, except that the cup 
is put to their lips by the Priest, not into their 
hands. The Communion service is in the main 
very like ours, only shorter : and during its 
celebration, the congregation sing appropriate 
Psalms. 

On the subject of the other Sacrament, the 
Lutheran Church holds the doctrine of Bap- 
tismal Regeneration very strongly. The Priest 
does not take the child into his arms, but 
sprinkles it with water, while in the nurse's 
arms ; and signs it with the sign of the Cross, 
both on its forehead, and its breast : the prayers 
are very similar to our own. The " Kirke- 
Ritual," as I understand it, confines the num- 
ber of sponsors and witnesses to five : but there 
usually are many more, who stand on each side 
down the Aisle, and when the ceremony is over 
march in procession, one after the other, all 
round the Altar (it is called the " Altar-gang ") 
and as they pass the Priest, severally present 
him a small piece of money, for which he makes 
x m 3 



250 tWO SUMMERS 

a slight obeisance, though appearing to be en- 
gaged all the time in bis private devotions. All 
the friends of the parties, in the Congregation, 
next follow, and make a similar offering : the 
same also takes place at a Marriage ; so that, I 
doubt not, a considerable sum often accrues to 
the Priest, but, I must say, it has not a good 
appearance. 

When the children are publicly catechized, 
which is frequently done preparatory to confirm- 
ation, the two sexes stand down their respec- 
tive sides of the Aisle, when the Priest, passing 
between them, examines them at great length, 
both in the words, and the spirit, of Martin 
Luther's "Long Catechism." He is, as might 
be supposed, very frequently obliged to put the 
answers into their mouths. 

This preparation for Confirmation is the best 
opportunity the poorer members of the Lutheran 
Church have of becoming acquainted with 
God's will and word. I have shown that no 
more of the Bible is publicly read, than what 



IN NORWAY. 251 

is contained in the portion of Scripture ap- 
pointed for the Epistles and Gospels of the 
respective Sundays. But previous to Con- 
firmation^ each person attends the Priest 
at his own house, until the latter is quite 
satisfied with his religious attainments : and 
as no one can be married, or indeed perform 
scarcely any civil office, without having been 
confirmed, it is infinitely more thought of, 
than in England. 

No Religion is allowed to be publicly pro- 
fessed in Norway, but the Established, the 
Lutheran : and there are practically few, or no 
Dissenters. There are indeed scattered here 
and there, throughout the country, principally 
in the South and West, a few " Hougianers/' 
(see vol. i. page 313,) but they are not only 
few in number, but also profess to adhere to 
the Established Church, although they are 
considered to hold several peculiar tenets, and 
have private Prayer Meetings in their own 
houses. 



252 TWO SUMMERS 

If I were called upon to express my opinion 
on the subject^ I should certainly say that the 
Norwegians are a generally moral, but not a 
religious people : the comparative absence of 
temptation will partly account for the first; 
while the hints I have given of their social ar- 
rangements, and public religious ministrations 
will perhaps seem sufficient to explain the lat- 
ter fact. Those who openly confess a more than 
ordinary care for the things of another world, 
and a desire for more frequent and more 
spiritual ministrations, than the usual service 
of their Church too generally affords, are here, 
as elsewhere, stamped with the title of "Helge," 
or Saints : but they seemed to me few and far 
between, and chiefly confined to the larger 
Towns. 

The Lutheran Church of Scandinavia (in- 
cluding Denmark, Sweden, and Norway) was 
one of the- few Protestant Communities that 
retained Episcopacy at the time of the Reform- 
ation. There are five Bishops in Norway, 



IN NORWAY. 253 

and about 340 Parishes. When it is considered 
that the length of Norway is about 1000 miles, 
it may easily be imagined of what an enor- 
mous size many of these parishes must be. 
They have been made so in order that the bur- 
then of maintaining the Clergy may fall as 
lightly as possible upon the scanty and poor 
population. The Priest receives a fixed amount 
of corn from each Farm : besides which he has 
almost always an extensive Glebe, and a good 
residence, together with the occasional fees 
before mentioned. 

But the necessary consequence of this dispro- 
portionate size of the districts intrusted to each 
Clergyman's care, is a great lack of religious 
instruction and knowledge. The Parish of 
Grong, where I resided so long, was upwards 
of eighty miles in length ; with five Chapels. 
Most of the large Country Parishes contain 
several Chapels, at great distances from each 
other : and as it is not the custom in Norway 
for the Priest ever to perform more than one 



-254 TWO SUMMERS 

Service on th<e Sabbath, it may be conceived 
how little opportunity the inhabitants of most 
retired districts have of publicly praising God, 
or learning their duty. 

The elements of reading and writing, to- 
gether with Luther's Catechism, are universally 
taught. In every Parish there are a number 
of Schoolmasters, proportioned to its size, who 
during the winter months go from one Farm- 
house to another, in their respective districts, 
when all the unconfirmed children of the 
neighbourhood are compelled to attend. Those 
who neglect, are not only debarred from the 
important rite of confirmation ; but are also 
liable to be fined. There is an Annual Visi- 
tation of each ecclesiastical district by one 
of the Priests appointed thereto with the title 
of ".Probst;" when among a great many other 
similar matters, the list of those who have 
attended or neglected the schoolmaster is read 
over, and the delinquents reprimanded or pun- 
ished : as also the salaries of the schoolmasters 



IN NORWAY. 255 

paid. The stipends of the schoolmasters that 
I was acquainted with, varied from twelve to 
fifteen dollars, (forty-eight to sixty shillings,) 
besides which, they are entitled to their board 
and lodging, gratis, during their three months' 
circuit. 

At this same Annual Visitation, the general 
state of the Parish is supposed to be accurately 
inquired into; the parochial Clergyman gives 
a sample of his preaching ; and all the candi- 
dates for confirmation undergo a very length- 
ened examination. This latter is always closed 
by their singing one or two Psalms : for 
Psalmody, as I have shoAvn, entering so much 
into their public worship, is necessarily made 
almost as much an object of instruction, as 
reading. Judging by the only opportunity 
I had of observing the Probst's annual Visita- 
tion, I should say it is not only an extremely 
interesting ceremony, but productive of con- 
siderable good ; although it cannot be supposed 
that the Probst, should be inclined to exercise 



256 TWO SUMMERS 

any great severity towards his brother Priests, 
with whom he is in daily habits of intimacy, 
and above whom he enjoys but a temporary 
elevation. 

I must repeat my conviction, derived from a 
tolerably extensive intercourse with the rural 
districts of Norway, that the faculty of reading, 
thus early and generally acquired, is but little 
improved in after life. Not only is it extremely 
rare to see a middle aged Norwegian reading, 
even on their days of rest ; but equally uncom- 
mon is the sight of half a dozen volumes in 
any house. The traveller is so commonly 
lodged in the room that contains all the Bon- 
der's chief valuables, that he could not help 
often seeing his books, if he possessed any. 
In the usual family cupboard I have seldom 
found other than Psalm books, with an ancient 
volume of devotions, perhaps, and a copy of 
the Ground-Law. Bibles are most unfortu- 
nately rare : and only twice have I found 
copies of the beautiful Bible, or Testament, 



IN NORWAY. 257 

published in Christiania, by the British and 
Foreign Bible Society. 

In these remarks, I must of course be 
understood as speaking of the interior of Nor- 
way : in the Towns, no doubt, there is greater 
opportunity, as well as desire, of reading; 
though even there, the study of the higher 
classes of literature seemed to me confined to 
very few, and that chiefly foreign, or in tran- 
slations. In the country, the difficulty of 
procuring books acts as a great bar to mental 
improvement. The " Privileged Handlers," 
who supply the place of shopkeepers through- 
out the interior, keep only the useful articles, 
for whijch they find the most demand : and 
there being no public conveyances, not even a 
regular carrier, it is not easy to obtain any 
intellectual food from the distant city. 

Another grievous impediment to the spread of 
information and education, is the absence of any 
school superior to the parochial provisions for 
elementary instruction before described, except 



258 TWO SUMMERS 

in the few large Towns. This, coupled with 
the want of any cheap mode of travelling, 
necessarily confines the education of the great 
majority of the children of the Clergy and others 
of the higher classes resident in the country, 
to private tuition; which with the parent's 
many other avocations, cannot but be inade- 
quately performed, even where he has the ability 
and the inclination for it. 

It is impossible that these various circum- 
stances of their social position, with the results 
that will naturally strike any one as flowing 
from them, should not have a marked effect on 
the national character of the Norwegians. I 
am far from saying that they can all be speedily 
remedied : some may even think it better for 
the people that they should remain as they are. 
I cannot bring myself to believe that such ig- 
norance is bliss : and I am sorry to be led to 
the conclusion, by such. opportunities of form- 
ing an opinion as I have had, that the mea- 
sures of the Storthing are characterised by too 



IN NORWAY. 259 

niggardly a spirit in these matters : that in 
short they partake too much of what strikes me 
to be the leading defect of the national charac- 
ter, namely, an overweening attention to 
things material, in preference to things moral, 
or intellectual. There appears to me too demo- 
cratic an objection to spend money upon any 
such subjects, too obstinate a jealousy of in- 
trusting any thing to the Executive ; which, 
however it may succeed in effecting a favoura- 
ble balance sheet, does not contribute to the 
advance of the national mind, of the moral and 
intellectual energies of the people. 

I do not pretend to understand the intricate 
subject of the Currency ; which, indeed, if we 
may judge by the disagreement among those 
who have most studied it, must be a very diffi- 
cult question. But figures would seem at any 
rate to show that by the above parsimonious * 
system, the finances of Norway have been 
brought into a satisfactory state. Its debt is 
fast disappearing, and its trade is increasing : a 



260 TWO SUMMERS 

large proportion of the population is in easy 
circumstances, as far as the produce of their 
lands is concerned. And yet there seems to be 
no money in the country : the want of a circu- 
lating medium is most grievously felt. Men 
who have an abundance of all the common 
necessaries of life, find it very difficult to raise 
a few shillings : and when they possess some 
superfluities, which others are willing enough 
to take, they yet find it next to impossible to 
obtain ready money, wherewith to purchase 
other things they want, or pay their taxes. 

A very intelligent Scotchman, who rented 
some large farms near Levanger, told me that 
this he found to be the great practical evil of 
the country. He could raise crops to reimburse 
him at the nominal prices of the neighbour- 
hood : but when he came to sell, he was always 
obliged to give at the least two years' credit, 
even to men of substance ; and at the last, had 
such trouble and difficulty to obtain any money, 
as to oblige him to give up his farms. The only 



IN NORWAY. 261 

way lie had of getting cash, was to export his 
corn in his own vessels to Trondhjeni, or some 
other large town. 

There is only one Bank of issue in Norway, 
stationed at Trondhjem : its paper forms the 
almost universal circulating medium of the 
country. For though the standard is silver; 
coins of that metal are so rare, that, I am sure, 
I did not altogether see five pounds' worth of 
silver during two long visits ; and gold I never 
saw. I never could make out what becomes of 
the silver raised at Kongsberg : it does not 
come into the circulation ; and the very scanty 
supply of spoons and forks, used in Norway, 
cannot absorb much. • 

In offering the above general observations 
on what appeared to me to be the social, moral, 
and political state of Norway, I have endea- 
voured briefly, but with all sincerity, to record 
my impressions of its real character : not 
feeling it right on the one hand to extenuate 
what I believed to be faulty in its institutions, 



262 TWO SUMMERS 

while, on the other, still more unwilling to set 
down aught in malice. 

All right minds take an interest in acquiring 
a correct estimation of the position and social 
arrangements of the other members of the 
great family of man. In no other way can 
this correct estimate be formed by such as 
have not the opportunity of personally visiting 
the respective countries, than by comparing to- 
gether the accounts of the several travellers who 
have had fair means of judging them. One man 
may have seen one aspect of the varying phases 
of society, another a different one : one tra- 
veller may have, voluntary or involuntary, 
prejudices of one sort, another of a totally 
contrary kind : and the result is the correc- 
tion of material error in the mind of the 
intelligent and unbiassed reader. 

With this conviction, I ventured to give 
my impressions, founded on altogether a nine 
months' residence in Norway, during which I 
visited a large portion of the country, and 



IN NORWAY. 263 

mixed extensively with the highest and lowest 
classes of its inhabitants. I can not byanymeans 
boast of peculiar powers of observation : but I 
am sure I can assert my sincere anxiety to arrive 
at the truth, and a warm, though not blind, 
affection both for the people and their land. 

Norway must ever possess an especial interest 
in the eyes of England, far beyond what its 
narrow bounds, or present rank in the scale 
of nations, would seem to claim : an interest, 
derived both from the ancient connexion that 
formerly subsisted between the two countries, 
as also the present countenance, and future 
protection that the one looks to from the other. 
Norway claims our attention even yet more, 
from the habits, and institutions of the olden 
time, which it alone among the old countries 
of Europe has been able to preserve ; and 
which possess a more than ordinary interest 
at the present time, when there are some wild 
spirits at home who dream that a democracy, 
an equalization of property, the abolition of 



264 TWQ SUMMERS 

all hereditary distinctions (all of which. Nor- 
way practically possesses to a considerable 
extent) would conduce to the improvement 
and general benefit of our own nation. 

I have endeavoured to show that, though 
in a country situated like Norway, such insti- 
tutions do seem to diffuse a certain degree of 
the common necessaries of life,, more generally 
among all classes, than our more feudal sys- 
tem ; yet even in this contracted nation they 
have a strong tendency to keep the people 
down at" a low intellectual level. In a country 
like ours (even if such changes could be ef- 
fected tranquilly, which is impossible) they 
would without doubt, destroy every thing that 
constitutes the moral and mental greatness of 
England. 

I trust that the liberties of this small, but 
interesting land will not be suffered by us to 
be overwhelmed, if ever they be attacked. On 
every account, their preservation must be con- 
sidered a matter of personal importance to 



IN NORWAY. 265 

ourselves. The dreaded foe of Norway is 
the most probable foe of ourselves, in every 
quarter of the Globe, where we come in con- 
tact : the enemy of her liberties is the enemy 
of those of the whole civilized world. On 
every side of her overgrown empire, she seems 
desirous of seizing the deserts of her neigh- 
bours, instead of cultivating her own ; of add- 
ing more and more hordes of savages to the 
countless millions she already possesses, instead 
of civilizing and elevating in the scale of being 
those that have long acknowledged her sway. 
We have already quite sufficient grounds of 
jealousy against Russia, at a thousand points, 
without allowing her to occupy a line of spa- 
cious ports, within a short sail of our own 
Northern shores. 

In addition to the moral sources of interest, 
thus connected with Norway, I have endea- 
voured (too faintly, I feel and confess,) to bring- 
before the English travelling public, those 
which are connected with its picturesque phy- 

VOL. II. N 



266 TWO SUMMERS 

sical features, its scenery, its geology; and 
especially the advantages it holds out to the 
Angler. All these recommendations Norway 
offers for a summer's excursion to the Tourist 
possessed of a healthy frame of mind and body. 
The former is necessary to appreciate the 
unsophisticated claims to his admiration that 
the inartificial state of society in the North 
presents : the other may be required at first, 
by the unaccustomed frugality of Norwegian 
fare, and the want of usual comforts, together 
with the unavoidable exposure to weather. I 
think, however, that a short familiarity with 
such fare will practically convince him that it 
is more conducive to lightness of spirits and 
activity of body, than all the mysteries of a 
Parisian cuisine ; while the experience of a few 
Skydskaffers' accommodations will realize to 
his convictions what he may before have only 
acknowledged theoretically, that " Man does 
in reality want but little here below." 

With such feelings, I will only further 



IN NORWAY, 267 

express my hope that these pages may be re- 
ceived as a humble contribution to the know- 
ledge of this interesting country and people ; 
and as a grateful, though imperfect, memorial 
of very many pleasant hours, and of very much 
personal kindness, for which I am indebted 
to Norway and Norwegians. 



n 2 



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274 



APPENDIX. 



RELATIVE VALUE OF MONEY, WEIGHTS, 
AND MEASURES. 



3 Marks 12 Skillings =1 Specie Thaler. 

An English Sovereign is usually equal to about 17 marks; 
therefore, an English penny equals about 1J Hamburg skilling. 



DANISH MONEY. 

• 16 Skillings ==1 Mark. 

6 Marks. . =1 Rigsbank daler (paper.) 
12 Marks. . —I Specie Rigsdaler (silver.) 

An English Sovereign is usually equal to about 9 Rigsbank 
dalers : therefore, an English penny equals about 3i Danish 
skillings. 



HAMBURG MONEY. 



16 Skillings 
3 Marks . . 



= 1 Mark. 

= 1 Hamburg Dollar. 



APPENDIX. 



275 



SWEDISH MONEY. 

48 Skillings . . . =1 Rix daler. 

2* Banco =3 X Rix. 

48 Skillings bco. = l Rix daler bco.= 72 Skillings Rixgeld. 
48 Skillings rix=l Rix daler (rix) =32 Skillings Banco. 

An English Sovereign is usually equal to about 11 dalers 
32 skillings Rix : therefore, an English penny equals about 2^ 
skillings Banco, or 3J skillings Rix. 



NORWEGIAN MONEY. 

24 Skillings =1 Mark, or Ort, as it is called in the North. 
5 Marks. . =1 Daler. 

An English Sovereign is usually equal to 5 dalers : therefore, 
an English penny equals about 2\ Norwegian skillings. 

The above relations to English values must of 
course vary with the rates of exchange : I have given 
what were the average values during my recent 
visits; they will be found sufficiently accurate for all 
ordinary purposes. 



762 



APPENDIX. 



NORWEGIAN MEASURES OF WEIGHTS. 

2 Lods . = 1 Ounce. 

2 Marks. = 1 Pound. 
12 Pounds = 1 Bismal Pund (often called simply 44 a Fund.") 
16 Pounds =1 Lispund. 
36 Pounds = 1 Vog. 
320 Pounds = 1 Skippund. 

100 Pounds Norwegian =109,8 691bs. avoirdupois English. 



SCANDINAVIAN MEASURES OF LENGTH. 

Danish Mile = 8,244 English yds. = 4.684 British stat. miles. 
Swedish do. =-11,700 ditto =6.640 ditto. 
Norwegian do.= 12,352 ditto =7.180 ditto. 

The Norwegian mile is equal to 18,000 ells, or 
36,000 feet : the Norwegian and the Rhenish foot 
are the same. 

1000 feet Norwegian are equal to 1029.36 feet 
English : the Encyclopaedia Britannica gives 1000 feet 
Norwegian, equal to 1033 feet English; hut from 
the authority I had for my statement, I believe it to 
be the most correct. According to the Edinburgh 
Cabinet Library, the Norwegian (or Rhenish) ell is 



APPENDIX. 



277 



equal to 24.71 British imperial inches ; which would 
make 1000 feet Norwegian, equal to 1028 feet 
English, nearly. 

According to the Edinburgh Encyclopaedia the 
Swedish ell is equal to 23.37 British imperial inches. 
And, finally, according to the semi-official map of 
the roads in Sweden and Norway, published at 
Stockholm by Brandenburg, in 1831, the Swedish 
mile is said to be to the Norwegian in the proportion 
of 1 : 1.0572. The discrepancies among the above 
authorities prove that they cannot be depended on for 
scientific calculations : but they are probably all suffi- 
ciently near the truth for the Tourist's information. 



278 



APPENDIX. 



It, perhaps, may be interesting, as serving to convey- 
some idea of the accommodations to be expected in the 
better kind of Norwegian Inn, as well as of the prices, 
if I subjoin a copy of the Tariff, established for the 
district North of Trondhjem ; and which will be found 
nearly similar to those fixed for other rural parts of 
Norway. These lists being official, a severe penalty 
is attached . to their infraction : and as they are or- 
dered to be affixed in a conspicuous place in the Tra- 
veller's apartment, it is his own fault if he be greatly 
overcharged. 

" List of Prices established for North Trondhjem' s Amt, 
August, 1836, by Fogman, G. Matthesen. 

For Personer uden for Almuestanden. 

Skillings. 



For Vserelse, med Lys, Varme, og Seng, per Dogn 16 

,, Vserelse med Seng, uden Lys og Varme 10 

,, een ret varm Mad, med Brod til 12 

,, een ret kold Mad, eller een Portion Smorre- 

brod, med Ost, og Kjod, eller deslige 8 

,, een Contoir-kop god KafFee, med Flode, og 

Sukker 6 

,, een Contoir-kop god Congo thee, med ditto . . 3 
,, een Flaske, eller een Potte godt, stserkere end 

almindeligt, Ml 4 

,, een Flaske, eller een Potte almindeligt Ml .... 2 

,, Dram godt Fransk Brsendeviin 2 

,, Dram godt Fransk Brsendeviin, Karve-aquavit 2 

,, Dram godt Norsk Brsendeviin, a 6 Grader. ... 1 



APPENDIX. 279 

For Personer af Almuestanden. 

For Vserelse, med Seng, Lys, og Varme, per Dogn 6 

„ Vserelse, med Seng, uden Lys og Varme 2 



Forlanger den Reisende SEerdeles Bevsertning af Mad og 
Drikkevarer, betales derfor efter Overeenskomft. Foranforte 
Taxt gjaelder indtil videre. 

Translation of the above Tariff: 

List of Prices to be paid by persons above the common rank. 

Skillings. 



For apartment, with lights, fire, and bed, per diem, 

(a day and a night) 16 

,, " Apartment with bed, but without lights or fire 10 

,, a good warm meal, with bread to it 12 

,, a good cold meal, or a portion of bread and but- 
ter, with cheese or meat, or the like 8 

,, a large cup of good coffee, with cream and sugar 6 

,, ditto congo tea, with ditto 3 

for a bottle or pot of good ale, stronger than or- 
dinary . . . . 4 

,, ditto, of common ale 2 

,, a glass of good French brandy 2 

- „ ditto of aquavita?, flavoured with caraway .... 2 
,, ditto good Norwegian brandy, of 6 degrees (of 

strength) 1 

Prices for Persons of the lower orders. 

For apartment with bed, light, and fire, per diem. . 6 

,, ditto ditto without lights and fire. ... 2 



Should the traveller require any particular service of eatables 
or liquors, they must be paid for according to private agreement. 
The above Tariff is in force until further notice. 



280 



APPENDIX. 



If the reader will refer to a former table for the 
value of a Norwegian skilling, he will see there can 
be no reason to complain of the exorbitance of this 
list of prices. He must not, however, think that he 
can readily obtain every one of the above articles by 
expressing his readiness to pay for them. The third 
and fourth articles, for instance, will almost invariably, 
resolve themselves into nothing better than "a por- 
tion of bread and butter, with cheese or the like." 
Very seldom indeed will he get "a good -warm or 
cold meal of meat:" and the "French brandy," he 
will soon find, was never out of Norway. 



I have added a vocabulary of some words and 
phrases likely to prove most useful to the Traveller 
either on the road, or at the inn : he may find it 
more convenient, than to have to search for the words 
he wants in a dictionary. It will at least serve for 
a commencement, which I should strongly recom- 
mend him to improve and increase by as large an 
acquaintance with the language itself, as his time 
and aptitude for foreign tongues will allow. 

Nothing is so great a comfort and advantage as 
to be, at least in some degree, acquainted with the 
language of the country in which one is travelling. 
Each step of progress in it amply compensates for 
the labour bestowed: and Norsk, in particular, is 
so easy in its construction, and withal so like Eng- 
lish, that our countrymen at any rate cannot find 



APPENDIX. 



281 



it difficult. It is said, with justice, to bear a still 
closer resemblance to Lowland Scotch : and in at- 
tempting to speak it, I should recommend the stran- 
ger to endeavour to imitate the broad accent, and 
the slow, singsong delivery of the Scottish Lowlander, 
rather than the rapid, indistinct, closemouthed pro- 
nunciation of many of the higher classes of Englishr 
men. 

The vowels have the broad open sound, given them 
by every people, except ourselves : the final e is 
always sounded, but is usually short. When o has 
two dots over it, as thus, d, it is pronounced like 
the French diphthong ce in ceil. When a has the 
same two dots, as thus, a, it has the long sound of 
our a, in "case" for instance. The double aa 
sounds exactly like our oa ; thus, Aar, the Year, is 
pronounced as our Oar. The vowel y is pronounced 
nearly like the French u : while the Norwegian^' has 
the sound and power of our consonantic y. 

The consonants require little remark ; except per- 
haps that d, where it follows a consonant, seems, in 
general, only to increase the sound of the preceding 
consonant thus, Fjelder, Mountains, is pronounced 
Fyel-ler : where it commences a syllable, it has its 
usual sound. The accents are very various : and no 
intelligible description of them, or directions for 
their employment, can easily be given. 

The Norsk verbs and substances have as few and 
simple inflections, as can well be. The regular verbs 
take a final r in the three persons singular of the 



282 



APPENDIX. 



present tense ; otherwise they end in e throughout 
the active voice ; and do not vary, either for person 
or number. In the passive voice they assume a 
final s, in addition to the corresponding tense of the 
active : the auxiliary verbs are very similar to ours, 
both in sound and use. Thus, jeg (pronounced yei) 
elsker, I love ; han, or him, elsker, he or she loves ; 
vi elske, de elske, we, they, love. Jeg elskede, I 
loved : Jeg skal ehke, I shall love. And in the 
passive, Jeg, or de, elskes, I, or they, are loved : jeg 
elskedes, I was loved : Jeg skal elskes, I shall be loved. 

Where there is any difference between the singular 
and plural of substantives, the latter is commonly 
formed by the addition of e, or er : the genitive takes 
a final s, or the proposition af (of) as in English : 
the other cases have no inflection. 

But by far the greatest peculiarity of the Norsk 
language is the use of the articles : these are en for 
the masculine and feminine ; et, for the neuter gender. 
When prefixed, they constitute the indefinite article ; 
when added as a termination to a substantive, they 
become the definite :. ne is the universal definite article 
of the plural. Thus, Hest, horse ; en Hest, a horse ; 
Hesten, the horse : Hester, horses ; lies t erne, the 
horses : Hestens, of the horse ; Hesternes, of the 
horses. But when an adjective is joined with the 
substantive, the demonstrative pronoun {den, del, de) 
is employed as the definite article : as thus, den 
hvide II est, the white horse ; det sorte Haar, the 
black hair : de hvide Hester, the white horses. 



APPENDIX. 



283 



The collocation of the words in a sentence follows 
the English construction, as nearly as possible : but 
I believe it will be found the best plan, in this as 
in all other languages, for the beginner to content 
himself with pronouncing, as distinctly as he can, the 
substantive that expresses the idea of what he wants. 
He is thus much more likely to make himself under- 
stood, than if he attempt to form a perfectly correct 
grammatical sentence ; and thereby run the chance of 
perplexing his hearer by so many more words impro- 
perly pronounced. 

The written language of Norway, as also the lan- 
guage of the pulpit, the stage, and the best society, 
is precisely the same as the Danish ; though the pro- 
nunciation is considerably different. The dialects in 
Norway vary very much ; in consequence, doubtless, 
of the little communication that the inhabitants of 
their confined vallies have with each other. It may 
however, be said generally, that wherever the patois 
of the peasants differ from pure Danish, they ap- 
proach so much nearer to the Swedish. The latter 
is so like Norsk,' that intelligent natives of the two 
countries can mutually understand each other : but 
it is much more harmonious to the ear; indeed, to 
my taste, when agreeably spoken, as it often is by 
the Swedish ladies, it is, next to Italian, the sweetest 
language I ever heard. Many of the harsher Nor- 
wegian sounds are softened down. The vowel e is 
frequently changed into a : k, which in Norsk is pro- 



284 



APPENDIX. 



nounced hard (except in a few rare instances where it 
precedes j) is in Swedish always soft whenever it 
precedes a soft vowel (e, % d.) Thus Kinnekulle, is 
pronounced Chinne /coolie, &c. 

I proceed now to give a short catalogue of some of 
the most useful words for the Tourist in Norway. 



Carriole .... Name of the Nor- 
wegian one-horse 
carriage. 

Vogn Carriage in general 

Hjul, (pronounced Hyool) Wheel. 

Armene .... The Shafts. 

Tomme .... Rein. 

Sele Harness. 

Svobe, (in Swedish, Piskan)Whip. 

Fjeder .... Spring. 

Smor Grease. 

Skydskaffer . Man that supplies 
post horses. 

Skydskarl . . Boy that goes with 
horses. 

Tilsigelsepenge, Money paid for 
ordering the 
horses : 4 sks. for 
each. 

Skiftet .... The Stage. 

Gastgivergaard, Inn. 

Dagbog. . . . Daybook, in which 
■the Traveller must 
enter his name, &c 

Papir ...... Paper. 

Penne Pen. 

Blsekke .... Ink. 



Trikke-penge, Drink money. 
KofFert .... Portmanteau. 

Kasse Box. 

Foderal .... Case. 

Middag-mad, Dinner. 
Nat-mad . . Supper. 
Frokost .... Breakfast. 
Noget til spise, Something to eat. 

Kjod Fresh meat. 

Flesk Salt meat. 

Vild Game. 

Fugl Bird. 

Rensdyr .... Reindeer. 

Tihiir Capercailzie. 

Urhan .... Black cock. 

Rype Ptarmigan. 

Hjerpe .... Hasel hen. 

Fisk Fish. 

Skinke .... Ham, or Bacon. 

Sild Herring. 

JEgger Eggs. 

Potata .... Potatoes. 
Smorre brod, Bread and Butter. 
Gammel Ost, Old Cheese. 
Flad brod . . Flat bread, or Bar- 
ley cake. 



APPENDIX. 



285 



Melk 


Milk. 


Mode 


Cream. 


Sukker .... 


Sugar. 




Butter. 


Thee 


Tea. 


Kaffee .... 


Coffee. 


En Dram Brandtviin, A glass of 




1 " 1 O.LLKX y . 


Bord « 


Table. 


Stul .... 


Chair. 


Kniv 


Knife. 


Gaffel 


Fork. 


Skee 


KjL)\J\JLl.t 


Tellerken . . 


Plate. 




Cup. 


Stor Giaes . . 


Large Glass. 


Kasserolle . . 


Kettle. 


Stege-pande, 


Fryingpan. 


lid 


Fire (the element). 


Varme .... 


Fire (in room). 


Nat quartier, 


Night lodging. 


Vserelse .... 


Room, or Chamber 




Bed. 


Lagene .... 


The Sheets. 


Teppe .... 


Coverlid. 


Lys 


Lights, or Candle. 


Vindue .... 


Window. 


Doren .... 


The Door. 


Vaske bolle . 


Washing basin. 


Vand (vulgar,Vatten) Water. 


Haandkleed . 


Towel. 




Soap. 


Regningen . . 


The Bill: 


Gode Betaling, Good Pay. 


Mand 


Husband. 




Wife. 



Son Son. 

Datter .... Daughter. 

Dreng Boy. 

Pige Girl. 

Liden God, (familiar for) Little 
Child. 

Born Children. 

Tjener .... Servant. 

Tolk Interpreter. 

Frak Coat. 

Beenklaeder . Trowsers. 

Hut Hat. 

Lue Cap. 

Lomme .... Pocket. 

Hest Horse. 

Hengst .... Stallion. 
Hoppe, or Mserf , Mare. 

Halt Lame. 

Ingen Sko paa, No Shoe on. 

Veien The Road. 

Bakke .... Hill. 

Fjeld Mountain range. 

Bjerg Rock. 

Fjord Arm of the Sea. 

Elv River. 

Nses (properly Nose) hence a Pro- 
montory. 
Vand (used often for Lake) pro- 



perly Water. 

Soe Lake, generally 

large. 

Faerge Ferry. 

Foss Waterfall. 

Mark Field, or cultivat- 

ed Land. 



288 



APPENDIX. 





Cornfield. 


Eng 


Meadow. 


Hvede .... 


Wheat. 


Ryg 


Rye. 


Byg ...... 


Barley. 


Havre .... 


Oats. 




Grass. 


Ho 


Hay. 




Barn. 


Creatur .... 


Cattle. 


Hund .... 


Dog. 




Pig. 


Ssetter .... 


Summer pasturage 


Skov 


Wood, or Forest. 


Trse 


(piece of) Wood ; 




also, Tree. 


Ask 


Ash. 


Birk 


Birch. 


Fym 


Scotch Fir. 




Spruce. 


Gaard .... 


Farm house. 


Prpestegaard, 


Priest's Residence, 


Bv 


Town (from which 




the termination of 




so many English 




places is derived.) 


Landet .... 


The Country. 




Bear. 


Rseve 


Fox. 


Ulv .... 


Wolf. 


Baad 


Boat (sound nearly 




the same.) 




Oar (ditto). 


Roerskarl . . 


Rower. 


Fiske-stang 


Fishing-rod. 


Fiske-snur . . 


Fishing-line. 



Snelle Reel. 

Angel, or Krog, Hook. 

Flue Fly. 

Flu-angel, or -) 

Flue-krog / Artificial fly. 

Lax Salmon. 

Oret, or Orred, Trout. 

Syk Grayling. 

Gjedde .... Pike. 
Aborre .... Perch. 
Gorkin .... Bleak. 
Naat, or Neet, Large Drawing 
Net. 

Garn Smaller Net, usu- 

ally fixed. 

Idag To-day. 

Igaar Yesterday. 

Imorgen . . To-morrow. 

Tidlig Early. 

Seen Late. 

Iquell .... In the Evening. 
Klokken, to, tre, Two, three 
o'clock. 

Dyb Deep. 

Grund .... Shallow. 
Feerdig .... Ready. 
Langsom . . Slow. 

Reen Clean. 

Smudsig . . Dirty. 

Ingen No one. 

Intet Nothing. 

Ikke Not. 

Nei No. 

Ja, (jo, in answer to a negative) 
Yes. 

Mange .... Many. 



APPENDIX. 



.287 



Meget Much. 

Noget .... Something. 

Strax Immediately. 

Snart Quickly. 

Fort ! Get on ! 

Tilbage .... Back again. 
Hojere Haand, Right hand. 
Venstre Haand Left hand. 

Kan Can. 

Vil Will. 

Skal Shall. 

Maa Must. 

Faae to get. 

SkafFe .... to procure. 

Raabe to call. 

Rente to fetch. 

Springe .... to run, or jump. 

Reise to travel. 



Hvile to rest. 

Ligge to lie down. 

Sove to sleep. 

Stege to fry. 

Koge ...... to boil. 

Slaae to strike. 

Skee to happen. 

Ssette paa . . to put on (the fire 
&c.) 

God dag. . . . Good day. 
Adje Farvel . Goodbye, farewell. 
Var so god, at, Be so good as to 
Om Forladse, I beg your pardon. 
Komm hiit ! Come here ! 
Giv mig min, Give me my 
Lukke Dor en til, Shut the door. 
Aabne Vinduen, Open the win- 
dow. 



Jeg takker .Mange Tak Thank you. Many thanks. 

Tak skal De have Thanks shall you have. 

Godt Veir Good weather. 

Regn Veir Rainy weather. 

Slem Vei Bad road. 

Bedste Slags The best kind. 

Det blseser It blows hard. 

Hvorledes bennder De Dem ? How do you do ? 

41 vem hedder Du ! What is your name ? 

Hvad kales dette ? What is that called ? 

Jeg forstaaer ikke I do not understand. 

Jeg er en Fremmed, en Engelskemand, I am a stranger, an English- 
man. 

Jeg kan ikke tale Norsk .... I cannot speak Norwegian. 

Du maa tale langsom You must speak slowly. 

Hvad koster det ? What does that cost ? 



288 



APPENDIX. 



Hvor langt er det herfra til . . How far is it from here to 

Er denne Veien til Is this the road to 

Hvor mange Klokken er det ? What o'clock is it ? 

Er der Ingen hjemme ? Is there no one at home ? 

Kan j eg ligge her ? Can I sleep here ? 

Kan jeg faae noget til spise ?. . Can I get any thing to eat ? 

Hvor ere Hesterne ? Where are the horses ? 

Hesterne vare bestilt om Klokken eet The horses were ordered 
/ for one o'clock. 

Hvor er min Tjener ?. . .' Where is my servant ? 

Hvor mange Aar gammel er Du ? How old are you ? 

Kjserre paa-or, frem ! Drive on ! 

Giv mig Regningen Give me the bill. 

Findes ingen Baad her ? .... Is there no boat here ? 

Kan man skaffemig en Baad, "1 r Can you procure me a boat, 

med et Par Roerskarl . . J \ with a couple of rowers ? 

Kan jeg faae en Hest strax ? . . Can I get a horse directly ? 

Nok een til One more. 



NUMERALS. 



Een 
To 

Tre .. 
Fier . . 
Fern . . 
Sex 
Syv .. 
Otte . . 
Ni..,, 
Ti . . . . 
Elleve 
Tolv . . 



1 

2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9 

10 
11 
12 



Tretten 13 

Fjorten 14 

Femten 15 

Sexten 16 

Sytten 17 

Atten 18 

Nitten 19 

Tyve 20 

Een og tyve 21 

To og tyve 22 

Tredive 30 

Fyrretyve 40 



APPENDIX. 



289 



Halvtresindstyve,orbrieny i ^ 

Halvtreds j 

Tresindstyve 60 

Halvfjersindstyve, or i ^ 
Halvfjers J 



Fjersindstyve 80 

Halvfemsindstyve or i 

Halvfems J ^ 

Hundrede 100 



Den forste .... The first Den tredie .... The third 

Den anden .... The second Den fjerde. . . . The fourth, &c. 

Den forste gang, The first time. Den anden gang, The second time. 

Een gang .... Once. To gang Twice. 

Tre gang .... Thrice. 

The Norwegian method of reckoning fractions of 
time or distances, is rather puzzling to a stranger at 
first : thus, " Klokken er halv tre means, it is half 
past two o'clock ; or, half ivay from the last number 
towards three. So also (e halv tresindstyve," signifies 
that it is half way from the last number forty, to- 
wards three times twenty, or sixty ; that is, it is 
fifty : and so on, with the others. 

If the stage be a mile and a half, you may perhaps 
be told that it is "halv anden miil;" or half ivay 
toivards the second mile : but more probably, that 
it is " Sex fjerding," or six quarters. If the distance 
be half a mile and an eighth, they will call it " fern 
ottendeel," or five eighths. A slight acquaintance 
with vulgar fractions will render this simple to the 

VOL, II. O 



290 



APPENDIX. 



Traveller : but should he be told that the stage is 
"halv sex Fjerding;" he must not fancy it to be only 
three quarters, or the half of six : he will find it to 
be five quarters, and an eighth ; or half way from 
Jive towards six, upon the same principle as before 
explained. 



THE END. 



Pardon, Printer, Alfred Place, Blackfriars Road. 



